by CW Ross

The Incurables is a band that blends elements of Detroit Rock and Brit Pop, blending sounds that harken back to the, 60's, 70's and early 80's to achieve their style.

The foundation of the Michigan based group is lifelong friends, Ray Lawson (Bass guitar and vocals) and Pat Kelly (Lead guitar and vocals), who the band's bio. said met in detention while in kindergarten together. Rounding out the band are cousin Darrin Lawson (drums and vocals) and highschool friend Dennis Pepperack (guitar and vocals).

The Incurables have found success sharing the stage with nationl touring acts (Billy Idol, Blues Traveler, Steppenwolf, Poison, Alice Cooper, Vince Neil) along with other Detroit based bands. They've also had successful tours abroad in both Germany and The Netherlands.

I got to listen to several tracks from the groups, “4 Play,” release. The songs found on it are filled with the previously mentioned styles produced using guitar driven, up-tempo beats.

If your looking for a mix of garage rock and 60's/70's Brit pop then check out The Incurables.

Band Website: http://www.theincurables.net

#Music, #TheIncurables, #CWRoss, #IndieMusic,

By CW Ross

Light45 is an original rock band from Rochester, Minnesota with longtime founding members, Justin (vocals, guitar) and Mark (bass) forming the core of the group along with additional musicians who have joined them throughout the years. The current additional band members include, Ian Benoit on guitar, and Scott Bentley on drums.

Besides their rock sound roots you'll also find other musical styles like hard rock, pop rock, worship, and reggae mixed in to Light45's sound that they describe as a, “New Wave of Classic Rock”.

They have had a slew of Top 30 singles over the years. Along with tv airplay, including in 2017 with the A&E Network using their track, “Bringing You Back to Life” for episodes of the tv series “Born This Way”. Along with the Discovery Network show, “Garage Rehab” using their song “Steeped”. Since then Light45 has also been featured in several different episodes of both, “Garage Rehab” and “Garage Rehab: Revisited”.

Before the covid shutdown the band was also frequent headliners at different shows and festivals sharing the stage with bands like, Disciple, Seventh Day Slumber, Unspoken, KJ-52, Bread of Stone, and Spoken.

Light45 says that what sets them apart from others is their unique approach to songwriting. “We believe the song should tell us where to go. It’s not our responsibility to force a genre, but to help guide it.”

The band's news single. “Medic,” out now, is a guitar ladden rock track about the need for a Savior. The band says the meaning behind the single is, “The Medic” is a song about Jesus Christ as the one true Healer of our body, mind, and spirit. The song tells the story of a fictional character who is in the process of dying, realizing that it is happening, that he is a sinner and that he is in need of a Savior physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

To learn more about the band and listen to their music visit:

Website: https://light45.com

Bandcamp: https://light45.bandcamp.com/

#Christian, #Music, #ChristianMusic, #Light45, #Medic, #CWRoss,

By CW Ross

I'm starting a new series on the blog featuring bands that I think are really good and that you should check out for yourself.

First up is the band, Docfell & Co. As their name suggest the group is lead by Dr. John Fells, who goes simply by Doc. He's a doctor by day and musician at night.

The Co. part of the group is comprised of band member's, Brad Rice (drums), John Barker (bass), Jordan Cox (harmonica, accordion and vocals) and Kyle Brown (lead guitar and production).

The band calls Tahlequah, Oklahoma home. They've been together for over ten years now and have put out several albums and singles over that time frame.

A little sidenote. I had never heard of Tahlequah before so I googled it and found that it's located the foothills of the Ozark Mountains and the capital of the modern Cherokee Nation and the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians.

I found out about the band through the site Music Submit and sampled several of their songs. I could tell right away that this band had that little something extra in their music that puts them above other bands. Docfell & Co.'s music is both well written and performed.

While listening to their music I could hear that these are seasoned musicians who know how to get the most from their instruments. Also the songs are well written and draw you in as they tell their story.

Trying to classify the band's sound by using just one genre is tough. Their music is more like an exotic recipe that's filled with many different spices to make each finished dish special. The main style used in their music is country but you'll also find musical style spices like, Americana, folk, and gospel to name just a few that are used to achieve the final musical song dish.

If I had to pick a favorite of the band's songs that I heard it would be, “John the ex-Baptist.” It's an up tempo autobiographical song that deals with the hypocrisy of some so-called, 'Christians,' who live in glass houses and always throwing stones at others while ignoring the way they are living their own lives.

Band leader Doc described the songs found on the band's latest album as mini-sermons. There is a spiritual thread that winds its way through much of the band's music I wouldn't call it religious but more life experiences based.

I have a feeling after listening to some of the songs penned by Doc along with major co-writing credits also going out to Jordan Cox on several of them that Doc has had an interesting journey up to this point of his life.

I think that Doc's philosophy on being in a Indie band is some words of wisdom that other indie bands should hear.

“When you’re an indie band, it’s often easy to get discouraged, so it’s important to define what success means to you,” Doc says. “For us, we take the same philosophy whether we’re playing for thousands at a festival or to a bar that’s half packed or only has a few people by the end of the night. We ask ourselves, Was it a fun gig? Did we have a good time? Did we touch people and maybe inspire those who heard us in some way? There are no small crowds, only small performances. No matter the circumstance, we go out and give them our all.”

I would encourage you to give Docfell & Co.'s music a listen.

Visit the band's website: http://www.docfellmusic.com

#Band, #Country, #Music, #CWRoss, #DocfellandCo., #DrJohnFells,

By CW Ross

After I had got done writing and posting my piece about apartment living recently my very special friend Kelly emailed me asking why I didn't include the building's elevators in it. I told her to be honest I had completely forgotten about them.

My experiences with my apartment building's elevators have verged on being a nightmare. So I guess I had tried blocking it out of my mind.

In my lifetime I have been on many different elevators both old and new but the ones in my apartment building have an evil side like I've found on no others that I've ridden before.

There are two elevators in the building and both have the reputation as not being a pleasant experience to use. One is larger and used for when someone moves in or out of the building so their big furniture can fit into it. The other is smaller in size but just as mean.

It's the rare occasion when a ride on the them goes without incident or a strange assortment of noises and sounds.

Everything from grinding and scraping sounds to shaking and up & down jerking motions as they try to settle on a particular floor before the doors open.

Like a tradition you aren't considered a real resident of my apartment building until you have been stuck on them. My official membership in the building came only several months into my move into the building one early evening. I had just returned from visiting my mother who resides in a nursing home. This was pre-Covid while in person visits were still allowed. But that's a story for another time.

I entered my apartment building's lobby and headed to the elevators and pushed the up button. The door on the bigger elevator opened and I got inside. Before the door closed another woman around the same age as me came around the corner and also got in it.

I forgot to mention on the way home I had gone through the local Mcdonald's drive thru and got a quarter pounder and some fries to bring home to eat for my supper meal that night. I was all ready for a nice peaceful night eating it and watching some tv in my reclining chair but the elevator had other plans for my night.

I pushed the button for my floor and asked the woman what floor she wanted pushed hers and the elevator doors closed. But instead of moving nothing happened. So I tried pushing the floor button again and nothing. So I tried pushing the open door button which produced no results.

I had heard the horror stories of other tenants having gotten stuck on the elevator and I tonight was my time to be added to the building's elevator folklore.

I looked at the woman stuck with me and said I guess I better push the emergency button which I did. Seconds later the voice of a local 911 operator came through the elevator's small speaker and said, '911 what is your emergency?'

I explained that we were stuck in the elevators and she told me to remain calm and that help was on the way.

As we waited for help to arrive, me and the woman had a short conversation. I'm not claustrophobic but don't enjoy being trapped either so I was a little bit nervous. I could see old movies playing in my mind where people got stuck on an elevator and having to be rescued through the elevator's ceiling and the little escape hatch.I'm not a small person so getting through a hatch located in the ceiling wouldn't have been a fun experience .

As in most stressful situations time doesn't seem right. It seemed like a long time but in reality it was only like 10 minutes until the fire company located only about ¼ mile down the road arrived and knocked on the doors to let us know that they were working to get us out.

We could hear banging on the doors and after about another 10 minutes using a big pry bar they managed to get the doors open and checked to make sure we were okay.

Looking back on it, what happened next was probably one of the dumber things I've done. We got out of that elevator and went and got on the other one right beside it and tried to use it. I live on the 8th floor and not in the greatest health suffering with a-fib among other health issues so walking up all those steps wasn't something I wanted to try to accomplish. Also since several firemen got on the elevator with us I figured if it did get stuck at least we had the help right there with us.

Luckily the ride in that elevator went without incident and I made it safely to my apartment and could finally enjoy my food.

Since then I've not gotten stuck in the elevators again although I have encountered some scary rides and on more than one occasion have jumped quickly off after having pushed the button to close the doors and nothing happening.

The apartment building I'm living in now was built in 1977 so the elevators have some age on them but I have no idea what the expected life span is of a commercial elevator? I can tell you though that these have seen better days.

About a week ago I had to go for a regular 6-month checkup at my family doctor who is located in a building that's only a few years old and the experience I had in those elevators was like a dream compared to the ones in my building.

First the elevators talk to you in a pleasant soothing voice. The open and closing of the doors are nearly silent with no grinding or banging sounds. And the ride was so smooth that it didn't even feel like I was moving. The difference was like riding in the finest air ride suspension car compared to in an old horse and buggy.

I appreciate and enjoy things with age on them but when it comes to elevators give me the new and improved ones!

#Elevators, #CWRoss, #Apartment,

By CW Ross

All of my life I have lived in houses so when I moved in to my apartment last year it was my first taste of apartment living. I want to share with you what I've learned about apartment living in that year, both good and bad.

Let's start with the good.

You don't have to worry about any maintenance because it is all handled by the building owners. If something breaks just dial up the building maintenance guy and let him take care of it. Also you can sale that mower or snowblower if you live in an area like me that gets snow because all of that is taken care of too by the building's owners.

The apartment I live in has all the utilities, except for the electric, included in with the monthly rental charge so you don't have a lot of different bills to worry about paying each month.

Most apartment buildings also have built in amenities. For example mine has a game room with a pool table, a computer room with free internet access. Also a big community room complete with a 75” big screen TV. In the community room also is a kitchen area where several of the building's ladies make meals to sell as a way to raise money. Unfortunately all all of these perks have been shutdown for now until the Covid virus restrictions are over.

Nice neighbors. If you're lucky enough to have good neighbors they keep an eye on you. The other day there was a knock on my apartment door and it was my next door neighbor just checking to make sure everything was okay since he hadn't seen me in the building for awhile. Last year I done him a favor when he bought too much food and needed to borrow some space in my freezer for a few days.

I'm lucky enough to be on one of the upper floors of my apartment building which is located in the downtown area of my city so I have a good view. Out my windows I can see one of the main rivers that run through town and several of the main highways. I also have a view of the mountains and local sports' arena.

The last positive is the building has good security with needing to have an electronic key fob with a sensor on it to enter the building. If someone wants to visit you they need to use the building's intercom system to dial your apartment up and then you have the choice of whether or not to ring them inside of the building.

Now lets get to the not so good things about apartment living.

The biggest is the noise. My building has over 100, 1-bedroom apartments on its eleven floors. So there are well over 125 people living in the building. As you might imagine with all of those people in one place there is a lot of noise. It's bad in the Winter months but even crazier in the Summer months. Rarely a day goes by that I'm not woken up by yelling or screaming as early as 5 am in the morning. Usually it's a fight between a couple and at least one of them is drunk so instead of normal talking it's loud level screaming.

Another negative is forget your privacy. Everywhere you look in the building are surveillance cameras, several of which anyone in the building who has cable TV can watch. Plus the gossip is flying in the building so if you tell anyone something it will be known throughout the entire building by the end of the day.

The way my apartment is setup I have no control over my heat setting. So even when its only 20 degrees outside I'm still setting in shorts and a t-shirt with a window open trying to stay cool. The temperature in my apartment rarely drops below 75-80 degrees.

Then come Summer time since the building has no air conditioning and they charge a crazy fee to put a whole in the wall to have one, plus the cost of the AC unit itself. During what was a very hot Summer last year it often was 85-90 degrees inside of my apartment. Which was made worse by my living room windows having a Southern exposure, so lots of solar heat to deal with too.

I went as far as building myself a homemade cooler AC unit that I found plans for on YouTube that basically uses a fan to blow air over ice and freezer blocks to produce cold air. It worked with limited success.

Another problem is constant checking of my apartment. There are always inspections going on in the building and apartment checks to make sure smoke detectors are working or the condition of the apartment along with four times a year pest control spraying.

Summing my first year of apartment living up I would say it's okay but not my favorite thing. I like the no maintenance aspect of it with the older I get and the fact that all the bills are combined into the rent is nice. I also like the one floor aspect of things and not having to go up and down steps all day. In a perfect world though I still prefer living in a house (preferably a ranch style one) then an apartment because I really enjoy my privacy that you give up with apartment living.

#Apartments, #ApartmentLiving, #CWRoss, #Lifestyle,

By CW Ross

A few months back I decided that I wanted to get myself a new bigger tv. The one I had was 32”, which in my youth would have been considered a big screen tv. I grew up in the time when color tv was just starting to become affordable for the average family. And when I say affordable they still cost $500. and up for one.

Once you had the tv the next problem was finding something to watch on it because cable wasn't around so it was time to hook up a rabbit ear antenna and hope you could get more than one channel to watch.

Anyway back to now and my new tv. After searching around Amazon I decided that I couldn't pass up the TCL 50” Roku model. It was available for only $268. and free shipping. So I ordered it and the big box with it inside arrived about a week later by UPS.

I unboxed it and hooked it up using a wi-fi connection to be able to use the Roku service found on it.

Since then I have been exploring the wonderful world of Roku. I don't think I could ever be happy again with my tv viewing owning a tv that didn't have Roku or another similar tv service on it. It's crazy how many different channels you can get on Roku with large numbers of them being totally free.

At last count I have 195 favorite channels now set on mine. Everything you could want can be found in the available channels. I tend to mostly watch cars, airguns, news and classic tv shows related channels but have recently become a YouTube channel junky.

After watching YouTube videos on a small screen seeing them on a 50” big screen just makes them seem so much better. I've been watching a lot of scrappers and thrift shopping types of videos on it. I also like watching the Maple Motors channel. It's a car dealership located in Tennessee that sells mostly classic American hot rods. Each car they have is test driven on video and then posted to their channel. They even have a game in each video called, 'does the horn work?' It amazes me how someone who owned a sweet looking car that you can tell they've put a lot of money into never put a few bucks into getting the horn to work.

If you haven't dipped your toes into the world of smart tv watching then you need to get yourself a Roku tv or Roku streaming device and check it out.

Be warned though it is addictive and you'll find hours fastly passing by in your life as you explore all the different channels and programs that are floating around on it just waiting to be watched by you.

#Roku, #SmartTV, #CWRoss,