Bitter Dregs

I was out of town over the weekend, playing a symphony concert out in Rapid City. Among other things, we did Beethoven's 5th symphony (one of the non-"ultra-violent" ones). I honestly felt that I played it as well or better than I ever have before. Granted, I know the piece very well and have worked on the bass part a lot, but it just sounded good with a technical comfort level I don't recall having with this challenging piece of music. There's no reason I should be playing this better than I would have in college when I was younger and playing hard every day. Who knows, maybe I'm being delusional. Or, even as I play less and get older, my musicianship continues to improve, bit by tiny bit. Whatever it is, it was a fun gig that I felt good about. And to my Dad, who's conducted this group for may years: I've always been amazed at the amount of quality you squeeze out of this rag-tag collection of players. The road there isn't always pretty, but you and the orchestra always manage to make it work. Bravo! What does this have to do with new DVD releases? Not a damn thing! I just felt like writing about it at the moment.

Another thing: I watched a fryer burst into flames at my local McDonald's. Seriously. There were flames shooting up out of the grease before the fire suppression system doused the thing. Tee hee. The staff, after the fire was out, seemed to be at a loss as to what should be done. I really can't blame them.

So, on that note, let's see what we have on DVD this week:

Alien vs. Predator: Requiem (2007) Also on Blu-Ray.

American Dad!: Season 3

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) Also on Blu-Ray.

Blast of Silence (1961)

Juno (2007) Also on Blu-Ray.

A Passage to India (1984) A new special edition, also being issued on Blu-Ray.