Have a beer and relax - Ventura County Line, CA - Early 2018 - Shot of iPhone
Can’t enough the new catchy Dashboard album! We also have a slew of tracks pop punk newbies that I found this week including Spanish Love Songs, Rally Cap, Hungover, The Happy Alright, and my new personal favorite, CUP CHECK! Check it out!
This week's list is PACKED with driving, up-tempo, incredible poppy tracks that will power your work day and send you dancing into the weekend! Check it out now!
Music Saves.
-YourFriendMatt
It this together - Marfa, TX - 2017
“My colon has never felt better.” - Me.
My birthday falls on January 31st. Having a birthday on the last day of January lines me up perfectly for a reset in February. I like the idea of leaving one age with a bang, and starting a new year, and a new era, with a sense of purpose. Last year, I challenged myself to an alcohol-free February. Cutting back on beer had its challenges, especially on weekends when Jamie and I would explore Nashville finding new restaurants we wanted to try, and their drink menu. I read a meme that I related to throughout the month that went something along the lines of “you don’t need alcohol to have fun,” and someone replied to it stating, “you also don’t need a car to get places, but it helps.”
Last years alcohol-free February was not as bad as I thought, so I decided to keep the February challenge going in 2018, and now Jamie is joining in. This February we have we have cut back on alcohol during the week, so we can still enjoy an adult beverage with each other on the weekends. This years main challenge is to go completely vegan. Gasp. This February we have cut out all meats, dairy, eggs, and CHEESE! You get the picture, not animal products.
I thought the process would be way harder than expected but as it turns out with a little prep and research, it really isn’t that hard. There are a ton of books, blogs, and apps that help you find your way through making simple changes to a plant-based diet. We are trying all kind of foods that we would have never checked out before and feeling incredible. We are on a culinary adventure. I didn’t even know what a jackfruit was, but now it’s one of my new favorite foundations for meat replacements.
We are getting married this year, and both kinds of wanted to tighten up our bodies. Doing this meat-free-vegan February has shown us that we can lose extra weight, get more energy and feel less bloated. I am sure cutting back on unnecessary alcohol after work on a weekday helps too. With this plant-based diet, I have lost over 7 pounds since starting at the beginning of the month and feel, for lack of better words, clean. (See title quote). Who knew? We have both also committed to making simple changes in our weekly work out routines like riding bikes to work, taking the stairs or an extra walk after meals, etc. I have been running consistently a few times a week since October, and since switching to a plant-based diet, I have been crushing my old run times and going further and faster than I used to.
Who knows if switching to a plant-based diet will be something we commit entirely to as a lifestyle change, but I would not be opposed. We feel great, are fueling our bodies with whole foods and seeing results, both physically in mentally. I will get off my pedestal for a minute and completely align and recognize that anyone pushing an agenda or lifestyle change is completely annoying. Nobody want’s to hang out with that guy, but if you were at all interested in trying a plant-based diet, even for a short time, I would recommend it. I am from Philadelphia, and there we live on cheese steaks and hoagies. And they are delicious. It’s in my blood to want to hang with my friends with a beer and sandwich. That will never change. I was just ready to try something new and trying a plant-based-vegan diet has been great to me. Check out some additional resources I have been using below.
Give it a try and if you feel the same after, awesome!
And if not, that’s cool too.
-YourFriendMatt
Fun Land - Hollywood, CA 2018 - Shot on iPhone X
Finally! New Young Statues! I was beginning to think we would never hear from them again! We also have some new Turnstile, who have an album up for pre-order. Story Untold, who just released their new album Waves this week. We also have a poppy new track from Dashboard Confessional and brand spanking new The Wonder Years! Check it out!
Music saves.
-YourFriendMatt
“Yes, I am a 31-year-old man. And no, I will not take off my Harry Potter robe.” - Me.
For my birthday this year, my family surprised me with tickets to Universal Studios Hollywood. Jamie and I are huge theme park people. I never knew I was until we moved to Southern California and we became Passholders at Disneyland. If you are at all interested to see how addicted we are to Disneyland, please see my personal Instagram account, we basically live there. I jumped for joy and threw on the robes that they presented me with along with the tickets to the park. They even got me a wand and glasses to match.
Jamie and I got to the park as the staff opened the gates for the day. It was a gorgeous and sunny Saturday morning. When the gates open, we ran like eight-year-olds to the entrance of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. We turned a corner and there it was; a snow-capped English town in the middle of Hollywood, CA. We just stood there speechless gazing upon Hogsmeade, Three Broomsticks, and Hogwarts. We couldn’t be stopped. We darted towards the parks main attraction, Harry Potter, and the Forbidden Journey. We heard the lines for it get out of hand later in the day, and we are not line people, so we figured we should hit this ride first before it got bonkers, and it did not disappoint.
Jamie and I know Disneyland like the back of our hands, but this was new territory. After we checked the ride with the longest wait time off our list, we were unsure of what to do next. We have never been here before and wanted to ensure we would get the full experience. Luckily, Universal Studios has an app, so we loaded it and started to plan it out. Universal’s layout is essentially two parks, an upper level, and a lower level. We figured we’d start at the lower level and make our way back up.
The plan seemed to work because we checked off Jurassic Park, The Mummy, and Transformers in under 30 minutes. These rides also get packed as the day goes on, so we were pumped to have a lot of the major stuff out of the way early. Getting to and from the upper and lower level took us about 5-10 minutes, without crowds. I can’t imagine what that experience would be in peak season. Side-note - Transformers is incredible.
We decided to save the Studio Tour for last and figured it was time for lunch and a beer; Duff Beer! The Simpson’s side of the park is another major highlight for me. I grew up loving everything The Simpson’s offered and being able to go to Moe’s as an adult and have a beer is a dream come true. As it turns out, Fox brought in a brewmaster to Trademark them a Duff Beer recipe. For real, I swear. Google it.
The rest of the afternoon we hung out at the Duff Beer Brewery for a while, jumped on The Simpson virtual roller coaster, meandered around stopping by Mulligan’s Irish Pub for another brew. From there we grabbed some dinner at Three Broomsticks, and of course, Butterbeer! I tend to stay away from sugary drinks, but holy hell. Butterbeer. Butterbeer is incredible. I had at least two of them. It’s just that incredible.
From there we just hung around Hogsmeade, shopped and had a few beers while people-watching. All in all, it was an incredible way to spend my 31st birthday. As I am not reading back through this, it sounds like an eight-year-olds birthday, but I am totally cool with that.
Expecto Patronum!
-YourFriendMatt
Santa Monica, CA - January 2018 - Shot on iPhone X
Another Friday and another fast-paced six song power pack! I feel like 2018 is doing a great job of turning out some tremendous pop-rock jams! I have fallen in love with Spanish Love Songs; they have a very Menzinger type sound. We have some new Woes and Senses Fail, as well as some driving new tracks from Graywater, Homebound, and Letdown! This list is ready to take on the weekend and party.
-YourFriendMatt
Clear your mind...
"Damn, I feel better." - Me.
I spent the last 90 days carving out at least 10 minutes a day to sit quietly while trying to clear my mind. I have tried meditating on and off for the last few years, but when we decided to move back to Santa Monica, I wanted to give it my best shot. We had a ton on our plates with the move, new routines, and the logistics of our new life back on the West Coast. I have found that meditation has helped me prioritize and tackle my day.
Finding the best time was hard, but I feel that meditating early, especially in the morning before doing anything, helps me wipe my mental slate clean, so I can start to load it back up again with all the different choices, decisions, and potentially tricky interactions I will have throughout my day.
I was a little nervous to get into meditation because of the reaction I thought my family and friends would give me, but they all turned out to be pretty supportive. Now and then I get the, "what a hippie" look from them, but that's no big deal. Meditation helps me with stress and aligns my focus on what I need to get done. Taking a few minutes out for yourself every day to reset, breath and clear your mind has become critical to ensuring I give very day my all.
If you are ever at all interested in meditation or new to meditation, I would suggest getting a coach or app, like Headspace. They are an app that walks you through meditations and helps you understand that it is okay to have a mind that runs a million miles an hour, but finding the time to reel it back it helps. At least it has helped me.
Stress kills and life is too short. I will gladly take the "what a hippie" glares from my family and friends rather than going gray early.
If you want to try the App I use, Headspace, click here!
-YourFriendMatt
Santa Monica, CA - January 2018 - Shot on iPhone X
We did it! We made it to another Friday! Time to enjoy some energetic new catchy-emo-pop punk-rock jams! This weeks list includes some new tracks from The Dangerous Summer, Senses Fail, and Hot Mulligan! We also have new tracks from Moose Blood, Gardenside and Till I Fall!
I will be listening to this and riding my bike all day with nothing but good vibes! I suggest you do the same if you can!
Music saves.
-YourFriendMatt
Swingers - Santa Monica, CA - January 2018 - Shot on iPhone X
This weeks list gets a little crazy. We have some new Senses Fail, then some chill tracks from Better Love and Toy Cars, then to a Punk/Metal mood before listening to new Good Old War with Anthony Green. Stay with me; this list is worth it. Listen now!
Music saves.
-YourFriendMatt
Santa Monica, CA - January 2018 - Shot on iPhone X
"Sorry kid, I need your scooter to get to work!" - Me.
I ride my bike to work. Standard maintenance is pretty low, and it gets me a good cardio workout before and after work, which is some of the times you need the most endorphins. My route too and from work is pretty flat, which makes for an enjoyable, unstressful ride. Plus, it’s southern California, so the weather is top notch.
But, this week I got a flat on my way into work. I was crunched for time and had limited options. Go back to the house? Out of the question. Be late? Call out? Out of the question. I was already halfway to work. Should I call a Lyft? Walk? Run? Nah. Lyft would take too long to get to me, I checked. Walking or running would leave me nice and sweaty. Being sweaty and smelly for an entire shift at work is not a good look.
Luckily living in Silicon Beach, there is always a new startup doing something unusual that challenges the conventional ways we have become accustomed too for convenient travel. Bird, a new app-based electric scooter company, had just infiltrated the Venice and Santa Monica area with a billion electric scooters littered around the neighborhoods. Essentially, any user can walk up to any of these parked scooters, open their app, unlock the scooter, pay to ride it and then leave it wherever when the user gets to their destination. Once the ride is ended with the app, the scooter locks back up. It’s wild. I open the app and found one close by up for grabs. As I approached a little girl ran right by me to claim the scooter; her dad trailed behind her. I got snaked! I was just a few feet away from my easy and inexpensive way to work, and I watched as someone else stole it from under me.
What was my move? Try to find another? The next closest scooter was seven blocks away; there was no way I was going to make it. Push her out of the way and take it? Harsh, but it just might work. I hung around for a minute to see if they were going to take it. They bumbled with the app trying to figure out how to unlock the scooter and get going. My only advantage was that I knew how to use the app.
I let them attempt a few times to get going and then couldn’t wait any longer. I was about to go with the push them out of the way option, but as I loaded the app, another user had just parked one on the same block. Since the daughter-dad combo couldn't figure out the app on this one, I saw them eyeing the other one, as if they were going to figure it out with the new scooter on the block. The little girl and I locked eyes; it was a showdown. The race was on! We both darted towards the new scooter, and I won.
“Sorry kid, I need to get to work!” I screamed as I scooted away into the sunset. Well, kinda. I mean technically the sun was out but not setting. And it was sweltering out. And I was on my way to work, not really a sunset situation.
I made it with a minute to spare.
On a good note, later that day I saw the daughter-dad combo scooting around Santa Monica, so all ended well.
Don't get in my way when I need to get to work.
-YourFriendMatt
January 2018 - Santa Monica, CA
Over a week into the new year. Where is time going?
So happy to share this weeks playlist. My very good friends Gold Coast FINALLY put out some new music! We also have an emotional track from Gleemer and a b-side from Hundreth, check it out!
Music saves.
-YourFriendMatt
Valentine, TX - 10/17/17 - Shot on iPhone 7 Plus
"Man, there ain't nothing out here." - Me.
We complained so much and stressed out over the last few weeks. Packing, unpacking, packing back up and unpacking it all again. At the time we were not the biggest fans of surviving on an endless amount of roadside snacks or take out gas station foods for our meals, but, we both agree that we would do it again in a heartbeat; and again. And again.
Jamie and I are settling down down and getting a routine for the first time since Fall. It is great to have an address and know where you are going to be end up at the end of the day, but we both agree the excitement, and even stress, of traveling is some of the most fun we have together. There is something about waking up in the middle of nowhere, getting a crappy cup of motel coffee and planning out the adventure that lies ahead in your day.
Are we nomads? Are we destined to drive around the country with our dogs to find forgotten towns strewn across the nation and discover what's there? How can we make money doing that? How can we make a living doing that?
-YourFriendMatt
The holidays are over and we are all back to work, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't have great music to listen too. This week's playlist starts off with the pop-punk stylings of Belmont and Original Sharks. We also have a new Brian Fallon off his new record 'Sleepwalkers." This list ends with a very weird tune by Bilmuri that reminds me of both NIN and The Cure. Very odd!
Music Saves.
-YourFriendMatt
Social media. For poop. 2018 is looking up.
This should be short and sweet. The name of the app says it all. Surprisingly I have told a few people about this app, they downloaded it, and are still currently tracking, as well as sharing, their poop.
The things we do with technology.
-YourFriendMatt
Anaheim, CA - Shot on iPhone X
It is always a good week when there is new Somos to listen too. I have been a long time listener of the moody and steady paced quartet and I hope you enjoy their new track "Permanently Lost". We also have driving and poignant new tracks form Tiny Moving Parts and No Better!
Plus a few extras!
Music saves.
-YourFriendMatt
When you gotta go...
You get to the movie theatre. You're excited to see the next seasonal blockbuster. You down your over-priced, gallon-sized soft drink, the movie starts and boom, you have to pee. You think to yourself, "Damn it." Don't worry. There's an app for this. Obviously, its 2017.
RunPee lets you know when the best time during the movie is to hit the restroom. Even better, RunPee makes sure these pee breaks don't take away from the plot or awesome fight scenes you "must see."
Remember, theaters don't have a pause button. Pee on my friends.
-YourFriendMatt
The iPhone X has been out for a few weeks now, and there have been some mixed emotions about Face ID, Animojis, and the Notch. I for one, love my iPhone X and all the incredible technology built into it. Face ID works every time, its blazing fast and I really don't care about the Notch. Some my peers do not share the same sentiment about the notch. To solve the notch issue, there have been a ton of "Notch Remover" app hitting the App Store, and I found one for free that does everything you need it to do. Notcho is easy to use and helps you create "notch-free" wallpapers in seconds.
Let's face it, this is a first world issue, but for those of us that don't think outside our world, this could be a huge issue. So, for those of us that have nothing better to do than bitch about the top of our thousand dollar iPhone X screen, here you go.
Notch on.
-YourFriendMatt
Marfa, TX - 10/2017 - Shot on iPhone 7 Plus
Black Friday got the best of me, so I am posting this weeks playlist on a Saturday. We have new upbeat tracks from Campfires and Snakfight, as well as a weird one from Earth Telephone and a new pre-release track from Waterparks! Tons of driving pop-punk here! Check it out!
Music saves.
-YourFriendMatt
We're not calorie countin'...
Ice Check is a new app that lets you know, in real time, if your local neighborhood McDonald's ice cream machine is operational or not. What a time to be alive. Drunk at 2am and need your McFlurry fix? No problem, there's an app for that. Honestly, I don't know how to feel about this. It a day an age where obesity runs rampant through every generation and cheap, awful food for you is available at every gas station, supermarket aisle and carefully placed vending machine; do we really need to know if the ice cream machine is working at the McDonald's down the street?
Who am I kidding, does it really matter? This is America. Land of the free. Convenience rules everything around us. In the infamous words of Ron Swanson, "The whole point of this country is if you want to eat garbage, balloon up to 600 pounds and die of a heart attack at 43, you can! You are free to do so."
Get your McFlurry on people.
-YourFriendMatt
November 17th, 2013 - 5am - Shot on iPhone 4s - Time to go
On this day four years ago, Jamie and I left everything we knew about the comforts of home, living with parents, and hit the road for Los Angeles. We drove through the early morning, hit one of the worst storms we had ever seen that pushed our SUV and trailer off the road, and finally ended up in Nashville, TN. This was the first stop on our first cross-country trip together. The next few days tested our relationship, forced us to think as a team and left us with memories we will never forget.
If you would have told me on that morning that we would both advance our careers, move to Nashville, get engaged, buy a home, and then move back to Los Angeles before 2018; I honestly don't know what I would have said. Maybe I would have said "Hell yeah!" Who knows.
Nashville now holds an extraordinary place in our hearts. This is where we bought our first house that we turned into a home. During that first stay in 2013, we hit a storm that delayed our drive for hours and we were in terrible spirits when we finally got to the city. The second we got out of the SUV, our moods changed. We heard the music, saw the lights of downtown and wanted to be apart of it. We had a blast "honky-tonkin" and hitting all the bars up and down Broadway.
Here is to reflecting, learning, and loving.
-YourFriendMatt
Our home for the next week - November 17th, 2013
Had to take off the trailer so we could park - Not fun
No idea.
When in Nashville...
The Don Kelley Band @ Robert's - Best band in Nashville - Had no idea this would become our local bar 3 years later when we moved in a few blocks away.
New Orleans, October 2017
Great week for some new pop rock jams. We were lucky enough to see Dashboard premier their new track "We Fight" while living in Nashville and now its available for all to hear! We also have a new pop-punk single from Real Friends, as well as a great track from Stacked Like Pancakes dedicated to the "fearless" leader of these broken states, 45!
Music saves.
-YourFriendMatt
