Welcome back to Thrak Attack, what's your adventure? This week I thought there was going to be nothing... then there was everything! I thought it was going to be a short day trip review to Camp Verde until my phone updated to iOS13 and I decided to get Apple Arcade, Foo Fighters released an EP, the Avett Brothers released a full length album, and there were 2 trailers and a bunch of news! So buckle up, it's going to be a long post!
NEWS!
-Avengers: Damage Control is a VR experience tied in with the MCU. I'm not sure what platforms this will be on but it may be incentive to check out PSVR.
-The Who release a new single after their issues with last week's concert cancellations.
-G Love and Special Sauce announced a new album titled "The Juice" which will release on January 17th and release a single for the album called "Go Crazy" (feat. Keb' Mo').
-Pokemon host a 24 hour Sword and Shield live stream which is almost a still screen for 24 hours and some pokemon pop out every once in a while. Essentially just to promote the new unicorn pokemon which some speculate to be Galarian Ponyta.
-Disney and Target open up specific stores for exclusive merchandise at some Targets around the country.
-Ms Marvel gets her own trailer for the Square Enix avengers game and it looks really great! I am super excited to see how that game turns out.
-Stan Lee gets his own Marvel Legends figure.
-Cedar Point and Six Flags may be merging their companies. The ultimate coaster company!
TRAILERS
Frozen 2 gets a new trailer only to promote the new song "Into the Unknown" which sounds like a fine song but it's going to be hard to live up to the popularity of "Let it Go" or "Do You Want to Build a Snowman" from the first film. The movie on the otherhand, looks amazing!
Birds of Prey is the next DC film which makes no sense with continuity or idea that they're going with their films. Their whole ploy is none of it is connected and it's all random stories from random multiverses that don't effect one another. This one however seems like it's a sequel to Suicide Squad movie (not to be confused with The Suicide Squad) which is a completely new story and start for those characters. I don't know what DC is doing but I don't think it's working.
REVIEWS!
iOS13 is the newest update to iPhone and it's a great update featuring new dark modes, apps, and features in existing apps. Here's what I found has been new...
Reminders- is a completely redesigned app which is super useful except I'm having trouble syncing it with my watch
Notes- has a new fingerpoint drawing option and dark mode.
Photos- gets a new layout which I do not like at all.
iMessage- gets new MeMoji options and a swipe to text feature.
Health- is the biggest and best update with features new overviews of your day and health tracking
New apps include...
Shortcuts- Basically, Apple bought the Workflow app and rebranded it for themselves.
Apple Arcade- some of these games are going to be great when it's on iPad or Apple TV but some of them are too big of games for the iPhone. I know you can connect a controller, but why not just put them on Apple TV and make that your video game console? Give people a reason to buy the Apple TV again. The games that do work on the iPhone that I have found so far are Pinball Wizard, WHATTHEGOLF, and Skate City. These three games are worth it until my month is up. Then Apple needs to add it to Apple TV so I can play those games on a home console.
Camp Verde Trip
If you want to see photos, check out our facebook page and instagram, but the trip was amazing!
We woke up and stopped at Sunrise Donuts for breakfast and drove up to Bell Trail which is just outside of Camp Verde. It was a 6 mile out and back trail with only a 500 ft elevation. The trail was well paved and easy to traverse. The end of the trail gets you to the creek where you can relax and have some lunch and put your feet in the water and get bit but a crawfish and then further up the trail there is a deeper spot where you can cliff jump into the frigid clear water. It was an amazing hike and a great way to spend a morning. The problem we made was parking at the Bruce Brocket trailhead which connects to the Bell Trail but adds a little longer and higher elevation and at the end of the hike, it was brutal.
Next was lunch at the Verde Brewing Company which either was amazing or will be in the future but for now was a weird spot. A warehouse off the interstate turnoff filled with beer that isn't done brewing yet so I had to get someone else's beer but the sandwich was delicious and my girlfriend said her veggie sandwich was "the best veggie sandwich she's ever had" so apparently they do know what they're doing!
Next we drove to Tuzigoot National Monument which is a Native American pueblo from the 1300's and looks like a castle on the hill unfortunately we did not get to go inside the pueblo due to the excessive moisture from this time of year, but it was still a cool experience and a great view!
After Tuzigoot, we stopped in Old Town Cottonwood and stopped in a few antique stores and a bookstore that specialized in the occult and the mysteries of the world. Atlantis, Ancient Aliens, Tarot, Mayan Mysteries, Time Travel, and many many more. I will be buying a book every time I'm up there from now on!
Finally we ate dinner at Merkin Vineyards and Osteria which I thought was just a cool tasting room but I kept seeing MJ Keenan on the menu, and bottle and thought that name sounded familiar so I did some research and the vineyards, that are located in Jerome, is owned by Maynard James Keenan from TOOL. No idea this was the case, I was drawn to that place and now I have a deep connection due to me being a TOOL fan. Oh, and MJ Keenan knows EXACTLY what he's doing! Great music, great wine, and great food! We got the last bottle Shinola red and I got the prickly pear mac n cheese which is officially one of my favorite dishes! After that we listened to TOOL the whole drive home to complete the most amazing day trip!
"Closer than Together" by Avett Brothers
1. Bleeding White- a banger and a heavy way to open the album but amazing!
2. Tell the Truth- a cool keyboard part
3. We Americans- way too preachy for my taste
4. Long Story Short- a very Avett Brothers song but doesn't have that much charm for me
5. C Sections and Railway Trestles- a catchy tune but not enough substance
6. High Steppin'- is this the same album?
7. When You Learn- alright we're back to the Avett Brothers
8. Bang Bang- also preachy but a better message and more clever lyrics
9. Better Here- A really great chorus for this song with great harmonies and strings
10. New Woman's World- love the message and the style of this song. The future of Rock is Female
11. Who Will I Hold- back to their folk roots on this song.
12. Locked Up- not as good as the first track but a heavier vibe like the first track
13. It's Raining Today- a great slow way to end the album
Is it going on my ultimate shelf? No, it's too preachy and disjointed for me as an album but I do like some of the songs!
"01070725- EP" by Foo Fighters
1. If Ever- one of the few new songs on this EP but it's honestly great! Foo's at their best!
2. Come Alive (Demo Version)- a demo version of one the worst songs on one of their worst albums
3. Seda- starts off like a spaghetti western and feels like a bad attempt a a folk song
4. Keep the Car Running (Live)- a cover of an arcade fire song
5. Holiday in Camobodia (Live)- Foo Fighters and Serj Tankain covering the Dead Kennedy's from the 2007 MTV Music Awards. Amazing
This EP starts and ends really well but there's not enough substance in the middle to call it one of the Foo Fighters best. No, it will not make it onto the ultimate shelf.
So that's the week! It was a lot of stuff! Again if you want to see more content please check out the Facebook and Instagram pages! Next will be a review of the Joker and potentially Concrete Genie! I hope to see you then! Keep going on adventures!
All the Best, Ross
NEWS!
-Avengers: Damage Control is a VR experience tied in with the MCU. I'm not sure what platforms this will be on but it may be incentive to check out PSVR.
-The Who release a new single after their issues with last week's concert cancellations.
-G Love and Special Sauce announced a new album titled "The Juice" which will release on January 17th and release a single for the album called "Go Crazy" (feat. Keb' Mo').
-Pokemon host a 24 hour Sword and Shield live stream which is almost a still screen for 24 hours and some pokemon pop out every once in a while. Essentially just to promote the new unicorn pokemon which some speculate to be Galarian Ponyta.
-Disney and Target open up specific stores for exclusive merchandise at some Targets around the country.
-Ms Marvel gets her own trailer for the Square Enix avengers game and it looks really great! I am super excited to see how that game turns out.
-Stan Lee gets his own Marvel Legends figure.
-Cedar Point and Six Flags may be merging their companies. The ultimate coaster company!
TRAILERS
Frozen 2 gets a new trailer only to promote the new song "Into the Unknown" which sounds like a fine song but it's going to be hard to live up to the popularity of "Let it Go" or "Do You Want to Build a Snowman" from the first film. The movie on the otherhand, looks amazing!
Birds of Prey is the next DC film which makes no sense with continuity or idea that they're going with their films. Their whole ploy is none of it is connected and it's all random stories from random multiverses that don't effect one another. This one however seems like it's a sequel to Suicide Squad movie (not to be confused with The Suicide Squad) which is a completely new story and start for those characters. I don't know what DC is doing but I don't think it's working.
REVIEWS!
iOS13 is the newest update to iPhone and it's a great update featuring new dark modes, apps, and features in existing apps. Here's what I found has been new...
Reminders- is a completely redesigned app which is super useful except I'm having trouble syncing it with my watch
Notes- has a new fingerpoint drawing option and dark mode.
Photos- gets a new layout which I do not like at all.
iMessage- gets new MeMoji options and a swipe to text feature.
Health- is the biggest and best update with features new overviews of your day and health tracking
New apps include...
Shortcuts- Basically, Apple bought the Workflow app and rebranded it for themselves.
Apple Arcade- some of these games are going to be great when it's on iPad or Apple TV but some of them are too big of games for the iPhone. I know you can connect a controller, but why not just put them on Apple TV and make that your video game console? Give people a reason to buy the Apple TV again. The games that do work on the iPhone that I have found so far are Pinball Wizard, WHATTHEGOLF, and Skate City. These three games are worth it until my month is up. Then Apple needs to add it to Apple TV so I can play those games on a home console.
Camp Verde Trip
If you want to see photos, check out our facebook page and instagram, but the trip was amazing!
We woke up and stopped at Sunrise Donuts for breakfast and drove up to Bell Trail which is just outside of Camp Verde. It was a 6 mile out and back trail with only a 500 ft elevation. The trail was well paved and easy to traverse. The end of the trail gets you to the creek where you can relax and have some lunch and put your feet in the water and get bit but a crawfish and then further up the trail there is a deeper spot where you can cliff jump into the frigid clear water. It was an amazing hike and a great way to spend a morning. The problem we made was parking at the Bruce Brocket trailhead which connects to the Bell Trail but adds a little longer and higher elevation and at the end of the hike, it was brutal.
Next was lunch at the Verde Brewing Company which either was amazing or will be in the future but for now was a weird spot. A warehouse off the interstate turnoff filled with beer that isn't done brewing yet so I had to get someone else's beer but the sandwich was delicious and my girlfriend said her veggie sandwich was "the best veggie sandwich she's ever had" so apparently they do know what they're doing!
Next we drove to Tuzigoot National Monument which is a Native American pueblo from the 1300's and looks like a castle on the hill unfortunately we did not get to go inside the pueblo due to the excessive moisture from this time of year, but it was still a cool experience and a great view!
After Tuzigoot, we stopped in Old Town Cottonwood and stopped in a few antique stores and a bookstore that specialized in the occult and the mysteries of the world. Atlantis, Ancient Aliens, Tarot, Mayan Mysteries, Time Travel, and many many more. I will be buying a book every time I'm up there from now on!
Finally we ate dinner at Merkin Vineyards and Osteria which I thought was just a cool tasting room but I kept seeing MJ Keenan on the menu, and bottle and thought that name sounded familiar so I did some research and the vineyards, that are located in Jerome, is owned by Maynard James Keenan from TOOL. No idea this was the case, I was drawn to that place and now I have a deep connection due to me being a TOOL fan. Oh, and MJ Keenan knows EXACTLY what he's doing! Great music, great wine, and great food! We got the last bottle Shinola red and I got the prickly pear mac n cheese which is officially one of my favorite dishes! After that we listened to TOOL the whole drive home to complete the most amazing day trip!
"Closer than Together" by Avett Brothers
1. Bleeding White- a banger and a heavy way to open the album but amazing!
2. Tell the Truth- a cool keyboard part
3. We Americans- way too preachy for my taste
4. Long Story Short- a very Avett Brothers song but doesn't have that much charm for me
5. C Sections and Railway Trestles- a catchy tune but not enough substance
6. High Steppin'- is this the same album?
7. When You Learn- alright we're back to the Avett Brothers
8. Bang Bang- also preachy but a better message and more clever lyrics
9. Better Here- A really great chorus for this song with great harmonies and strings
10. New Woman's World- love the message and the style of this song. The future of Rock is Female
11. Who Will I Hold- back to their folk roots on this song.
12. Locked Up- not as good as the first track but a heavier vibe like the first track
13. It's Raining Today- a great slow way to end the album
Is it going on my ultimate shelf? No, it's too preachy and disjointed for me as an album but I do like some of the songs!
"01070725- EP" by Foo Fighters
1. If Ever- one of the few new songs on this EP but it's honestly great! Foo's at their best!
2. Come Alive (Demo Version)- a demo version of one the worst songs on one of their worst albums
3. Seda- starts off like a spaghetti western and feels like a bad attempt a a folk song
4. Keep the Car Running (Live)- a cover of an arcade fire song
5. Holiday in Camobodia (Live)- Foo Fighters and Serj Tankain covering the Dead Kennedy's from the 2007 MTV Music Awards. Amazing
This EP starts and ends really well but there's not enough substance in the middle to call it one of the Foo Fighters best. No, it will not make it onto the ultimate shelf.
So that's the week! It was a lot of stuff! Again if you want to see more content please check out the Facebook and Instagram pages! Next will be a review of the Joker and potentially Concrete Genie! I hope to see you then! Keep going on adventures!
All the Best, Ross
Comments
Post a Comment