Crazyworld

You know, one Democratic insider I talked to this week joked that, "The change we really need is for this election to be over." Amen. After two years, I think that's what everyone is ready for.

So to take a break from the last week of chaos, I'm lucky enough to get to see Guy Clark tonight at The Handlebar in Greenville. Tickets are still available, which blows my mind. Hopefully, they'll allow audio or video recording. I've tried my hand at that a few times...

Anyway, here goes a good version of Clark's "Desperados Waiting for a Train." Not sure who recorded this one or where it's from, but it's good.

... Waaaaaaaaaayyyyy too much stuff going on this weekend to do the bunch of entries I had planned. Moving across town will do that.

Anyway, a potpourri of politics, technology and comic books:

- John McCain's Please Call List: Despite suspending his campaign, Republican presidential candidate John McCain's campaign sent out an e-mail recently encouraging supporters to sign up for online phone banking. Telemarket from home! Here's the link. I tried to sign up to see what kind of access I could get for some Spartanburg ZIP codes, but have yet to be able to figure out their Web site. That said, I haven't put all that much time into it.

- Democratic state Senate candidate Jimmy Tobias bought 100,000 pieces of candy with his name on the wrapper. Said it cost him $3,000. I've yet to find that on his campaign disclosure statement... Though I guess it could've happened since early July, when he says he swore off receiving any campaign contributions. He says he hopes the candy makes people think of him and then leave a sweet taste in their mouth. Clever.

- Democratic state House candidate Will Rothschild is trying to sell me on the idea he's winning over Republicans who have never (or seldom) voted for Democrats in the past, saying that he's proven to them that he is the most qualified candidate in his race. I have no reason to doubt him, but at the same time, I have mixed feelings about how to handle this race, since I've worked with Rothschild in the past. Too bad we don't have enough reporters to cover all the news. But keep an eye on this race...

- Speaking of which, Rothchild's opponent, Derham Cole Jr., was one of four Spartanburg state legislative candidates standing alongside Gov. Mark Sanford last week at Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport advocating a roll-call vote on every bill the state General Assembly passes. Alongside Cole were Republican candidates Shane Martin, Steve Parker and Joey Millwood. The bill they're supporting is sponsored by state Rep. Nikki Haley. Of course, my colleague Bob Dalton pointed out that if Haley was really serious, she could call for a roll-call vote personally on every piece of legislation to show she means business. But instead, I guess we have business as usual. Perhaps Haley doesn't do it because she can't get enough support with the current batch of cowar--- err, representatives. (I think you need nine or 10 seconds for the roll-call vote to proceed.) If that's the case, then she has at least three potential House members in her corner from this area, whether the bill passes or not. This year, we'll see how serious she is.

- The Clutch show the other night was awesome. I got the band's main set list (Thanks, Oscar!), plus a guitar pick (thanks, Ooze!) and a drum head (thanks, drunk guy in the parking lot!). Asheville usually has a pretty laid-back crowd, but last week's show was full of drunk youngsters clawing their way to the front. Who promptly received elbows to their arms, backs and faces. I guess they'll learn.

- Because of the gas shortage, Millwood is finding himself walking more and driving less on the campaign trail. Landrum is hit hard, particularly because all of the Tarheels coming across the line to fill up, he said.

- I haven't had time yet to call former Gov. Jim Hodges, former state Democratic Chairman Dick Harpootlian or former Richland County Democratic Party Chairman Rick Benjamin to ask why they sent out an e-mail recently encouraging Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama's supporters to storm North Carolina this weekend in support of their candidate. I mean, the official word from the camp is that South Carolina is in play, and all of the campaign's resources in South Carolina are, in fact, dedicated to South Carolina. A miscommunication, or a PR blooper? We'll see.

- The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has lost yet another lawsuit. When are they going to get the picture that the Internet will sooner or later spur the evolution of copyright laws on to the 21st Century? In case they're successful, though, I only share live shows -- and nearly every one of them is by a band who has told me explicitly they are OK with people recording and trading their shows, as long as it's not for profit. Of course, most of the bands I listen to no one has ever heard of. That might have something to do with it.

- As I frantically finish packing to move away from The Haven at Oak Forest (frankly, I'm glad to be getting out of there, though I've learned their reputation for bleeding every penny they can out of someone is true), I'm finishing up organizing and cataloging comics I've recently read. I really wanted to do a detailed review of "Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes," but just won't have the time. But comics fans, especially older ones, who remember the original Legion, should buy it. And Newbies would like it, too. This re-introduces a whole new aspect to the Superman mythos, one that has been sorely missing. (This would've been coupled with a critique of the over-hyped, over-delayed "Last Son" arc in "Action Comics," which started strong but ended -- much later than anticipated -- on an extremely weak and confusing note.)

I'm sure there's more, but there's work to be done. Hope everyone has a good weekend.

Part of me is sad that I'll miss the county's land-use meeting in Boiling Springs Tuesday night. But that's a very small part.

I'll be at The Orange Peel in Asheville, N.C., to see one of the best rock'n'roll bands touring today: Clutch. The above video is a good example of their album sound, but trust me, this is a band that you need to see live. Again and again. I've seen them more than 40 times over the last 13 years. In October 2005, I was able to take a week off from work and follow them from Atlanta though the Carolinas and into Richmond, Va. Here's a picture from that show, which was at Alley Cats.

But that was back when I was younger. Now I'm old (30, sheesh), broke and in the middle of moving across town, so hitting their five North Carolina shows this month was out of the question. I may get to see them again Wednesday night in Atlanta if the time and money work out.

I can't say enough great things about Clutch. They tour constantly. They are always professional. And they put on a damn good show. I've seen them jam for what seemed like 30 or 40 minutes on the same song before. They take turns picking the set list, so the shows are always different. Sometimes, they're more mellow, blusey sounding almost. Other times, they're heavier, with more of a punk sound. But trying to shoehorn them into any one category of music isn't really fair to the band.

Look closely at the photo above. The guy in the black T-shirt with his head down is my buddy Mute. I'm next to him, in a white T-shirt with a giant drunk guy leaning on me. Seriously, that guy was heavy. Me and the other guy beside me could not push him off of us. I think he actually passed out a few times, and was held up by the compactness of the crowd.

And, yes, I got one of the set lists that night.