Dave, what I would suggest starting with an all-female group named Band Maid, they are right now the top rock group on the planet. They've already been to Britain several times since 2016, I believe, and I just saw them twice last October on their 2022 US tour, which was a 20 date tour. They were here just a month ago opening for another Japanese band, and will be back here for a short tour in May. I don't know what your preferences are, but there is another group I just started following, called Glim Spanky. They've been around for a while and are pretty good. It's a male and female duo who use session musicians exclusively for recording . Remi and Hiroki both play excellent guitar in the classic rock style and Hiroki, the vocalist, is just amazing. She's Japan's version of Janis Joplin and Grace Slick. lastly, I would definitely recommend Wagakki Band, who combine Japanese traditional instruments with modern rock instruments in a mix of genres that is amazing. And their songs and performances have a great feel to them. They have a tremendous vocalist in Yuko Suzuhana, who is also a composer, lyricist and concert pianist, as well as an expert and university instructor in traditional Japanese singing style and dance, for both the fan and the sword. To me, only Adele is her equal in the West. One of the concerts I'm hoping to go to is their New Year's celebration called Dai Shinnenkai, which is a real event judging by videos I've seen. They didn't do one in 2023 because Yuko had her first child in November of 2022. If you have a real liking for Japanese style, you will definitely enjoy them.
And since you mentioned you love Kyoto, Band Maid did an April Fool's joke several years ago when they said they were changing their style to the traditional Japanese geisha culture and changed the name of the band to Band Maiko. Maiko is the term for a geisha in training. They did a mini-album of six songs where they played in the videos in traditional geisha dress. it really is amazing and they filmed the videos in Kyoto. I think you will enjoy them.
David, sorry my friend but I have to disagree in the Georgia kid. Brodie Jones is my guy for us. Reminds me a lot of D’Brickashaw Ferguson. Tall,lean athletic guy that moves well. His limited experience is a concern but it also means he’s got a lot of ware left on his tires and there is so much room for development and improvement. We have Brown to start the season if Jones is not quite ready but I see him as a top tier LT for years. Rashon Slater would be another good comp for Skoronski. He was only 6’3 32’ arms. He’s already a pro bowl OT!
The first question is are we drafting a left Tackle or a Right Tackle ? Ideally you would want position versatility, but is Dwand Jones & Darnell Wright Right Tackles only ?
After Georgia’s pro day, some NFL people said that Jones was the best in the draft. Time will tell.
As far as Blake Freeland is concerned
Nothing personal but no thanks. One of the biggest complaints against Zach is that the level of competition he played against made him look better than he actually was. Until proven otherwise, Freeland is in the same boat.
On a personal issue, congratulations on the new baby, just one question with having a full time job, your newsletter and soccer, where do you find the time to................
First, congratulations of the new addition David, but get ready for sleepless nights and exhausted days, lol. Been there, done that, and have the scars, kids, grandkids and great-grandchild to prove it. But I'm sure you have what it takes to handle it effortlessly.
Your list of tackles is deep and your synopsis for each is done extremely well. I'm not the kind of guy who goes deep into stats and game film (after a pretty short time my eyes glaze over and I start to drool), but your assessments are concise and on point.
I do spend lot of time on music, specifically the great new artists coming out of Asia, and Japan in particular. Compared to the lackluster state of music in the US today, Japan is a shining beacon and has been rejuvenating classic rock and metal singlehandedly. I'm planning a trip to Japan during the holidays to go to a massive New Year's concert in either Tokyo at Budokan or in Osaka at Osaka-Jo Hall depending on the final lineup. I'm also hoping to get over to your neck of the woods next year to see what's going on at the Download Festival.
Dave, what I would suggest starting with an all-female group named Band Maid, they are right now the top rock group on the planet. They've already been to Britain several times since 2016, I believe, and I just saw them twice last October on their 2022 US tour, which was a 20 date tour. They were here just a month ago opening for another Japanese band, and will be back here for a short tour in May. I don't know what your preferences are, but there is another group I just started following, called Glim Spanky. They've been around for a while and are pretty good. It's a male and female duo who use session musicians exclusively for recording . Remi and Hiroki both play excellent guitar in the classic rock style and Hiroki, the vocalist, is just amazing. She's Japan's version of Janis Joplin and Grace Slick. lastly, I would definitely recommend Wagakki Band, who combine Japanese traditional instruments with modern rock instruments in a mix of genres that is amazing. And their songs and performances have a great feel to them. They have a tremendous vocalist in Yuko Suzuhana, who is also a composer, lyricist and concert pianist, as well as an expert and university instructor in traditional Japanese singing style and dance, for both the fan and the sword. To me, only Adele is her equal in the West. One of the concerts I'm hoping to go to is their New Year's celebration called Dai Shinnenkai, which is a real event judging by videos I've seen. They didn't do one in 2023 because Yuko had her first child in November of 2022. If you have a real liking for Japanese style, you will definitely enjoy them.
And since you mentioned you love Kyoto, Band Maid did an April Fool's joke several years ago when they said they were changing their style to the traditional Japanese geisha culture and changed the name of the band to Band Maiko. Maiko is the term for a geisha in training. They did a mini-album of six songs where they played in the videos in traditional geisha dress. it really is amazing and they filmed the videos in Kyoto. I think you will enjoy them.
David, sorry my friend but I have to disagree in the Georgia kid. Brodie Jones is my guy for us. Reminds me a lot of D’Brickashaw Ferguson. Tall,lean athletic guy that moves well. His limited experience is a concern but it also means he’s got a lot of ware left on his tires and there is so much room for development and improvement. We have Brown to start the season if Jones is not quite ready but I see him as a top tier LT for years. Rashon Slater would be another good comp for Skoronski. He was only 6’3 32’ arms. He’s already a pro bowl OT!
The first question is are we drafting a left Tackle or a Right Tackle ? Ideally you would want position versatility, but is Dwand Jones & Darnell Wright Right Tackles only ?
After Georgia’s pro day, some NFL people said that Jones was the best in the draft. Time will tell.
As far as Blake Freeland is concerned
Nothing personal but no thanks. One of the biggest complaints against Zach is that the level of competition he played against made him look better than he actually was. Until proven otherwise, Freeland is in the same boat.
On a personal issue, congratulations on the new baby, just one question with having a full time job, your newsletter and soccer, where do you find the time to................
First, congratulations of the new addition David, but get ready for sleepless nights and exhausted days, lol. Been there, done that, and have the scars, kids, grandkids and great-grandchild to prove it. But I'm sure you have what it takes to handle it effortlessly.
Your list of tackles is deep and your synopsis for each is done extremely well. I'm not the kind of guy who goes deep into stats and game film (after a pretty short time my eyes glaze over and I start to drool), but your assessments are concise and on point.
I do spend lot of time on music, specifically the great new artists coming out of Asia, and Japan in particular. Compared to the lackluster state of music in the US today, Japan is a shining beacon and has been rejuvenating classic rock and metal singlehandedly. I'm planning a trip to Japan during the holidays to go to a massive New Year's concert in either Tokyo at Budokan or in Osaka at Osaka-Jo Hall depending on the final lineup. I'm also hoping to get over to your neck of the woods next year to see what's going on at the Download Festival.
Good analysis David !