zachary pfriem

Myspace, Livejournal, and Facebook, goodbye. You never contributed anything of significance.

[edit]On the other hand,  neither has this blog[/edit]

And now to completely haunt your brains with noise and mindless repetition, broken by screaming and over indulgence in sound, cheers!

DOWNLOAD:
Weird Ass Shit, it’s delicious!

While I sit here, listening to the awe inspiring sound of Royksopp’s What Else Is There, featuring the singer of The Knife, while indulging my palette with a well balanced Lost Abbey Ale, I ponder the recent decision I have made.

For a portion of my pre-teens and teen years I played a pen and paper role playing game entitled Rift’s, a post apocalyptic fantasy/sci-fi game that helped me deal with my youthful anger and passions. Escaping to an alien filled, disaster of a world where black and white seemed to be the prominent element of decision, helped me to grow and accept things. One of my closest friends, Darryl, had moved away to Texas after 8th grade, and ever since then, playing Rift’s ceased. The books have been sitting on my shelf ever since, occasionally picked up to browse the beautiful illustrations, that irreplaceable tactile memory of flipping to a page that had spent so much time open on that it pulls your place to it every time your flip through.

These books have only sentimental value now, and therefore only really exist in my memories. I have decided to relieve myself of the burden of these items, however, I will keep one book, as I never want to risk the complete loss of the memories I hold that are momentarily released when I hold this book. This has been a decision nearly 10 years in the making, how interesting human behavior can be, especially towards books of white paper containing printed letters of black ink.

My music taste is sporadic, at best, however, one style/sound that has held my attention for quite some time is the experimental sounds of the Freak Folk scene. A very loosely defined sub-genre, compiling such groups/artists as Animal Collective, Akron/Family, Grizzly Bear, Panda Bear, Avey Tare, Califone, and a few others that I have not given a good listen to.

Animal Collective is a group that has caused an almost obsessive infatuation within me. Their chaotic samples, looped endlessly and filtered to the point of noise, paired with ethereal vocals that transcend into high pitch emotional screaming makes my mind rage with adventure and spiritual clarity. They are a band, if you can call them a band, that dares to attempt to reinvent the rock sound, using almost all the elements, however, collaged into a new vision

I reccomend starting with their album Sung Tongs (2004) as a starter, then give their latest, Strawberry Jam (2007), a whirl. Or, if you are a little attension-span disabled, then you can check out the play list I have created containing some of my favorite songs of theirs, however, this is a band that deserves entire album listens as they do take the time to write an album, not a collection of singles.

Always support the artists you like by purchasing their albums and hearing them live when they are on tour. If you live in the Seattle area, I find that Easy Street Records carries at least a few Animal Collective albums, and online, insound.com carries all of their albums for easy delivery.

Download:
Zach’s Collection of Animals

Watch:
Animal Collective - Peacebone

I discovered something today which really let me down. One of my most enjoyed songs of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Let the Cool Goddess Rust Away, has turned out to be a complete rip-off of one of my long lost favorite Radiohead songs, Stop Whispering. Maybe I am over analyzing this, give them both a listen, and tell me there aren’t similarities. The bassline, the way the vocals rise, tempo, melodies, the song even ends the exact same way.

Radiohead, Stop Whispering (1993)
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Let the Cool Goddess Rust Away (2005)

I am not one to make new year’s resolutions, I find that superficial goals like these can discredit any real accomplishment made during the year. So, instead of making goals, I would like to reflect on the accomplishments, hard ships, and memories of the past year that stand out the most.

The first, and foremost important, was Julie and I’s beautiful Maui Wedding on April 30th. After our long term engagement of almost two years, Julie and I had come to a point in which the wedding of our dreams was ready to become a reality. We forsook most typical tradition, and looked for a more simpleton avenue, one that procured love, union, and compassion in the most raw sense. Our ceremony was beautiful, our family was in full attendance, and the setting was perfect. These are the things that matter most to us. I will always remember our drive to Hana and the night spent there after our wedding. From the mango banana bread that we bought on the side of the road, to the quaint little cabin we rented for the evening, I will cherish these days. I will forever remember our day trip to the north western part of the island for a hike to the blow hole, and a lunch stop at the Maui Brewing Company on the way home. Other vivid memories include the excellent fish kabobs we had in Lahaina, the sunrise at Haleakala Crater, hikes to both the Aquarium and Fish Bowl snorkeling spots, the countless beaches, swimming with a sea turtle, barbecuing fish almost every night, and most of all, becoming even closer to my beautiful wife in a tropical paradise that we will always associate with our becoming of husband and wife.

Secondly, Julie and I went to visit my Grandmother in Cincinnati, OH. Grandma Dot went to the hospital due to shortness of breathe. They had to intubate her, and assist her breathing. When I heard of this news I knew I had to visit her. I had just accepted a new job at POP Multimedia, and therefore had the ability to take a few days off in between jobs, which I allotted for a trip to visit my Grandma. While visiting, Grandma was in a rehab center to help her build her strength, the few hours spent with her each day allowed me to catch up with her. She told Julie and I of her time as a child growing up on a tobacco farm in Iowa, from school to friends. She told me stories of my Dad in his youth, helping me understand myself even further. Taking advantage of my time in Cincinnati, we attempted to see all of the family that live in the area. We stayed at my Aunt Debbie and Uncle Tom’s house, who took great care of us. We were able to meet up with my Aunt Cheryl, Uncle Jon, and Cousin Lori for dinner and a conversation to catch up. We had a great breakfast and cup of coffee with my cousin Johann the morning of our last day, afterwards my Aunt Annie hosted a lunch with us, my Uncle Joey, Aunt Barb, Uncle Ed, my other Aunt Barb, and cousin Marella. It was amazing catching up and rekindling these relationships with family I had not seen in over 10 years.

The third and most recent memory of 2007 was spending the remainder of the year with my Brother, Sister-In-Law, and niece. With my new job I receive the holidays off, and what better thing to do than to spend this time with family. We flew to Salt Lake City on the 27th and remained there until New Year’s Day. The week was spent playing with Sahale, evening chats with Josh and Annie over home brew and select bottles of mostly Belgian brews. The ground was covered with a blanket of snow that made the holiday feel fulfilled. Josh’s brewing has reached an amazing level. On Saturday we spent the entire day brewing up a new batch, a wild yeast Lambic. This beer will not be ready for consumption for one year, a very poetic and beautiful association I will have with this, a new year, an annual visit maybe? This was the first time I have been present during an entire brewing process, and a very educational one at that. We had a great dinner every night, taking turns at the helm. New Year’s Eve was most awesome. It consisted of friends and family making home made sushi, consuming home brew, dancing and singing, and just having a blast.

Some other memories from the past year include hikes in the North Cascades, attending yet another Sasquatch Festival, visiting Vancouver twice, once for fruit and food, and a second time for food and to see Tokyo Police Club, my good friend Mike and his wife Karin’s reception, birthdays of friends, holidays spent with family, and Julie acquiring her Associates of Arts degree, the first step toward her dream career.

I can only hope that 2008 will bring as much love and great memories as the previous year did.

Epson Perfection 4180 Photo Scanner 300 dpi my apartment seattle wa

my mom gave to me the best gift ever this year. last night we went through a million family photos, when i found one i cherished, i set it aside and scanned it in. i must of scanned a million photos, this is my favorite one of my mom. she was 20 years old, her and I look so much alike.

Lumix DMC-LX2 iso400 my apartment seattle wa

maybe I should try being less of an ass around this time of year. I know red wine helps with this, as does candle light and good music. cheers.

With the winter season comes much discussion of the true reason behind the celebrations we hold so dear. I would like to think that I live in a well educated nation, one in which education for all is held as a high value, however, certain instances always question this concept. One contributor to this questioning is the lack of knowledge of human history, in this case, the lack of knowledge of Post Apostolic Christian history and the Church of the Holy Roman Empire.

This year the Winter Solstice will fall on the day of December 22nd, at the time of 6:08 am. This time of year, in past cultures of Northern Europe, and current, was celebrated with the burning of the Yule log, or fire. Traditionally, this fire was made to be an extra long fire to burn through the night as the solstice represents the longest night of the year, “…when the Sun’s position in the sky is at its greatest angular distance on the other side of the equatorial plane as the observer.” [source]

During the rein of Constantine I, Christianity was announced as the universal religion of conquered Europe. In order to smoothly transition cultural beliefs, rituals were slowly converted into Christian themes. This included Yule (Winter Solstice) into Christmas, and the celebration of Easter, correlating at the time of Spring Equinox (New Year’s like celebration for the returning of the crop season).

I have no qualms with whatever way individuals celebrate this joyous time, as all beliefs share that it is a time of celebration to be had with family, friends, and all other loved ones. It is a time to cherish what we have, and to help others acquire what they need. What does need to be realized as an issue in our culture and changed is the concept of mass gift giving. Instead of spending money on people, maybe spend time with them, arrange a time to get together to go out  for a meal, or dine in together at one another’s homes.  Maybe give them a photo of you and your family, or a simple note about what they mean to you.  I am yet to have a story recited to me from a friend or family member that contains what they received for gifts on a particular holiday, the stories I hear time and time again are those that contain memories of spending quality time with loved ones.

Consider the origins of certain traditions, question what you believe in, and when you have excess, help others gain a level of security, and fulfilled need. Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Seasons Greetings, Happy Kwanzaa, Happy Holidays, Happy New Year, Happy Yule, etc. etc. etc.

Lumix DMC-LX2 iso100 palace ballroom seattle wa

employee holiday party for POP, great location, gambling (with fake money), open bar, tom douglas cuisine, most excellent.