From The Ashes

2004-05-03T02:45:00.000-06:00

Albums that rocked April
1. Modest Mouse - Good news for people who like bad news
2. Dane and the Death Machine - Thanatron (three tracks now)
3. Half-Step - From the ashes EP
4. Muse - Showbiz
5. Modest Mouse - The moon and Antartica
6. Nirvana - In Utero
7. The Strokes - Is this it?

that's all I listened to this month...well, actually Good News for People who love bad news was literally the ONLY thing I listened to for an entire week towards the end of the month. And even now it's pretty much the only thing I listen to...If you have a negative opinion about this album, I seriously don't even want to hear about it. And if you post a comment against it I will forever banish your opinions from this journal...that's how deep and serious my love and appreciation is for that album. In fact, the title of this post should be "The best album in the entire world is Good News For People Who Love Bad News"
-Dane G. Russ

2004-04-26T15:00:00.000-06:00

I'm Sick
and I don't feel like typing anything in here, but I guess I will anyway.
our From the Ashes EP is selling well, thank you everyone who's purchased one to support the cause. It will come back to you tenfold.
Okay, I'm going to go lay down and die now.
-Dane

2004-04-22T02:13:00.000-06:00

I am so diggin the weather right now
It has been so gloomy and stormy these past couple of weeks...I'm just loving it. The sky is overcast all day long, people are dressing warm, but not too warm, everything smells like rain, the streets have a tiny gloss of water over them...and I just need to listen to Sound Garden.
Grunge rock is the best music to listen to on a rainy day. It sounds strange, but sometimes I can almost hear the weather in the music. It sounds like tires rolling on wet gravel,and rain pounding on your hood...it sounds like wet clothes that stick to your body...and it sounds like mud. I love Grunge music. I love how diverse it all was. If you think of the bands that they classified as "Grunge" and then see how diverse their sounds really were:

Pearl Jam
Nirvana
Sound Garden
Mud Honey
Alice In Chains

They all have this sound of the elements...but their music is all so diverse. It's just insanity. It's like they all managed to capture the exact same world using completly different musical genre's.
I'm rambling.
Anyway, enjoy the weather...it's going to get real hot real soon.
-Dane

2004-04-21T16:57:00.000-06:00

Kilby Court and From the Ashes
Last nights show was seriously the bomb diggity omb shit. We were happy to see all of our good ol friends out at Kilby Court. The weather was doom and gloom as it has been for the past weeks. But the energy in the venue was kickin. A big thank you to not only our friends and fans, but also to the kick ass bands that played with us: DeadLip and Watashi-Wa (sorry Just Jenni...but you just didn't cut it). We also released our From the Ashes EP, which I've had a few complaints that the lyrics weren't posted on the web. Eff. I'm still trying to decide if I want to even post the lyrics up or not.
I'm also pretty stoked because we seem to be getting a lot more recognition lately. Thanks to Live and Local with Brandie, myspace, and of course the bomb Super Joy site! So yeah. Things are good!
Thanks again to everyone who took the time out to come and see us. Your support is ever appreciated and never forgotten.
-Dane

2004-04-13T01:47:00.000-06:00

Boy for sale
Recording of From the Ashes is coming along quite nicely I suppose. This album has had so much fucking trouble being made, I just don't get it. It's like everything in the world seemed to be working against it. But we're doing it. The only catch is that we need all the help we can get. Heh, we're basically recording it all in installments. Just look at it like it's Kill Bill or something, like you can buy this first little album we're putting out, knowing full well that soon the rest of it will be out.
Eff. we're going to be turning into little money making machines here. We need all the dough we can get baby. So, I guess we're going to start turning tricks.

2004-04-07T11:19:00.000-06:00

What Rocked March?

1. Muse - Absolution
2. A Perfect Circle - Thirteenth Step
3. The Mars Volta - De-loused in the Cromatorium
4. Janes addiction - Ritual De lo Habitual
5. Dave Mathews Band - Lilly White sessions
6. Dane and the Death Machine - Thanatron (well...one track for now)
7. TooL - Lateralus
8. Desert Sessions - 7 & 8
9. Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf
10. Ben Harper - ummmm...I forget the name of his first album, but it's super great!

So those are the albums that rocked me in March. I'm sure I listened to a lot more music, but these albums made me feel funny.
-Dane

2004-04-02T21:46:00.000-07:00

If you don't stop being a bad puppy, we're going to have to put you down
We're playing a show at Kilby Court on the 2oth, anyone who doesn't go is going to be plauged. We're talking lepracy.
I want to get out of Salt Lake City and stop working at The Olive Garden. I'm sick of smelling Italian food everyday. I'm sick of the desert. I want a bear as a pet...no one would fuck with the guy who has a bear as a pet.
-Dane

2004-03-24T11:27:00.000-07:00

Recording
So ummm there has been a slight delay in the recording process of From the Ashes. But this doesn't mean that anyone should be sad. It's still going to get done...
There is a little bit of indecision and schedule conflicts and blah blah blah...you don't want to hear our excuses, you want to hear our music. So this is why I'm going to tell you this, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks". I hope that cleared everything up.
But I do have to say that the delay in recording has brought to you some very good things. HOORAY! It has given us some time to get back to the writing process, and from this process we are going to be making the album a bit longer than expected. Longer is always better...always...well, actually I guess longer can be bad. Like in Magnolia, and you think the movie is going to end, but it doesn't...it just goes on forever, and then it starts raining frogs because I guess they just didn't know how to end it (that's why I think it went on for so long), so after eight hours of film they're finally like, "just drop some fucking frogs on them and call it square".
I hated that movie.
-Dane

2004-03-18T17:20:00.000-07:00

To be? Or not to be...that is the question.
I am just now getting ready to go see The Mars Volta/ A Perfect Circle show. I am so excited. I don't know what to do with myself...I'm running in circles. A Perfect Circle is a band like none other...their presence on stage is almost vampiric. I miss Paz though...
And The Mars Volta have created the single greatest album ever produced; De-Loused in the Cromatorium. It is perfect in every way. It is better than AENIMA, Houses, Dark Side Of The Moon, and yes...even Songs For the Deaf.
I am so excited. I just messed myself.
-Danedanedanedanedane

2004-03-12T12:05:00.000-07:00

Top Ten Albums of February
Haha...it's like Halfway through March, but here they are anyway.

1. The Mars Volta - De-loused in the Cromatorium
2. Half-Step - From the Ashes (the demo cuts)
3. Desert Sessions - Volumes 7-8
4. The Strokes - Room On Fire
5. Thursday - War All the Time
6. Queens of the Stone Age - Songs For the Deaf
7. Dream Theatre - Scenes From a Memory (Metropolis pt. 2)
8. HIM - Razorblade Romance
9. Muse - Showbiz
10. Incubus - A crow left from the murder

(I also watched the Led Zeppelin DVD a bajillion times, but it's not an album so yeah...) Now remember, these aren't in any particular order or anything, it is just a list of the ten albums I listened to and/or enjoyed the most during the rockin month of February. And no, I feel no shame for putting my own band on the list.
-Dane "I have a week to find a new place to live" Goodman

2004-03-05T02:44:00.000-07:00

What Have I Done?
Tonight was fucking awesome. The entire band and some of our crew went out to see the two greatest local bands out there; Kohabit and P. Fattie Lumpkin. This is crazy because all three of us have NEVER gone out to see a local show at the same time, but we just fucking love these guys.
It was fucking bomb. For anyone that wasn't there, you missed out on a righteous show. 1096 began the evening...it was pretty cool. At the begging of their set the guitarist and drummer were doing some crazy ambien noise, no bassist or singer in sight, and then these two guys walk in. One of them (the singer) is wearing a straight jacket and a black hood over his head, the other one (bass) is leading him to the stage. The bassist takes of the jacket to reveal a button up white shirt underneath, and he replaces it with a suit coat. then he takes the hood off and the singer says some crazy ass preacher type shit, resulting in a bunch of rock hands flying up in the air and then the music took off. Personaly I say this is where their set went down hill...but oh well, we can't all be winners.
Needless to say Kohabit dominated the night, P.F.L coming in a close and very rightfully earned second. Damn, yeah. Afterwards a few people went over to Down Town Music and chilled at Kohabits band room for a while, and a friend of ours was introduced to pornography...she said she didn't like it but I think she secretely did deep down inside.
Then we all went to Dee's, were really loud and annoying, and didn't tip very well. It was awesome.
-Dane mother fucker Dane

2004-02-26T15:10:00.000-07:00

Johnny B's Pics

Here are the pics, just like I promised.

Half-Step, Johnny B's- Provo Ut. 2/25/04

2004-02-26T12:23:00.000-07:00

Johnny B's
Fuck yeah! Last nights show was so amazing. Thank you to everyone for coming. We know it was one of the smaller shows we've played in a while ( I think there was like...25 people there or something, hah!) but it had one of the coolest grooves of any of our shows.
My favorite part was when we dedicated Into The Sun to Kohabit, and as soon as the hard part hit everyone was just freaking out and moshing. Fuck yeah! You guys rule! I love Kohabit.
I guess I was scraping up my finger pretty bad on my strings because I looked down at my guitar at one point, and the strings were a rusty red color, and I could see these crimson sparkles inbetween my pick ups on Mackenzi...I was bleeding all over my guitar it was fucking awesome. Except now I have to change out my strings, and give my baby Mack a good rub down. OH well, she likes it when I rub her down.
After the show we went to Dee's with a pretty small group of kick ass people from the show. Steven, the drummer of Kohabit came with us. It was fucking awesome. Steve is really super sexy, I could grab his ass all day. I think Kohabit is the coolest fucking band around. They have so much energy. Jared jumped off the stage and slammed into a bunch of people in the crowd during one of their songs...he just kept screaming the whole time. Kiki and Jay Jay were fucking jocking the strings too...you don't even know. They make the ground shake.
I'll put pics from that show up as soon as I get them...probobly tomorrow.
-Dane

2004-02-24T02:40:00.000-07:00

so I'm losing my mind
The best chance for successfully maintaining control over the thoughts of an out of control psyche is to keep it heavily sedated. Tell it lies, tell it truths...tell it whatever it needs to hear to lay down and die. Maybe it will gurgle an apology from it's open and bleeding throat as you carry it to the garden...kerosine in one hand, a shovel in the other.
Dying slow is the worst thing in the entire world. To have something over your shoulder that you are having to keep at bay with a daily routine of drugs and mental war. Death comes in so many ways but all in the same form. It can only be presented in one medium. It can only be realized by the ones that experience it. It is not possible to die from a broken heart...it is not possible to die by bad luck...or misfortune. Luck, love, and fortune do not live here anymore. They've gone away. There was nothing left for them.

2004-02-23T11:25:00.000-07:00

So...what the fuck?

Feb 25 -Provo
JOHNNY B'S COMEDY CLUB
177 W. 300 S.
8:00 pm. SHARP!
$5.00 at the door
We know that we don't have a lot of fans in Provo, so we really need everyone's support. And if you guys don't support us, we're not going to support you...this means you crack head bums! No more crack if you don't come.

-Half-Step

Fuck it all. I'm sad. I don't get it. I don't understand why everything horrible has to be happening to me all at the same time. I don't understand why my band mates hate me. I'm going to go back to sleep...and when I wake up I'm going to go back to sleep again.

-Dane

2004-02-22T11:09:00.000-07:00

"falling asleep....and we're praying....these are the symptoms of letting go. Cuz we can't compete with modern saints, we douse ourselfs in gasoline and hang our bodies from the lamposts so that our shadows turn into bright lights"
So last night I heard some terrible news about a friend of mine...and I don't even know what to think. But I'm angry, and sad...and I don't understand why things happen the way they do. If there is a God, I can't wait to see his face when he tries to explain things like this to me. I wonder if he's going to look me in the eyes...
I'm sorry. I feel so powerless right now.

-Dane Goodman

2004-02-21T12:16:00.000-07:00

Fuck Bush
So I hope that you all checked out those pictures *ahem*. If not, you should stop masturbating, and go look at the pictures...so you can resume masturbating.
Eugene Oregon is the bomb shit. We love everyone from there. Hippies are cool. Just not when they're all old and hate your music because it's not mellow enough, and then they go crazy wild for the mother fucking Rodeo Boys (who were actually really good). Stupid hippies. But Props to Eugene!
Lately I've been feeling really good about things. Theres more of a positive return right now then there usually is. The bad doesn't outweigh the good as much. It's a happy thing. It's taking a lot of stress off of me...but I'm sure that the stress is just instead going to other people, because you can't just erase something like that, you just have to move it. Karma baby.
Well I think I'm going to get stoned and take a hike in the woods. Oh no! Now the whole world knows my terrorist secret! Fuck em. I don't support terrorism...well not by buying pot anyway, I support my friend who needs a few extra bucks and some free weed. Fuck you Bush. Fuck you.

-Dane "The corporate slut" Goodman

2004-02-20T13:54:00.000-07:00

Kilby Court was a blast and a half
Thanks to everyone for coming last night. It was a rocking show, I checked with the guy at the door and he said...once again the Half-Step crowd was the majority of the attendance! You guys are awesome! Our fans are the coolest people ever and we love each and every single one of you.
Also, to anyone who talked any shit on Uh...Fuck you. Uh was way good, and I hope you liked them because we're going to ask them to do some more shows with us. I liked their energy, they had a lot of emotion behind their music without having to be emotional...that's nice. I like bands who understand that in order to say you're hurting, you don't have to say "I'm hurting".
Okay...let's see. Also the pictures from The show are already up on the internet. Well, from one photographer anyway. We're going to have a lot alot ALOT of pictures up here from that show. But here is the gallery link if you want it.

Half-Step hates the Love. Kilby Court - 02/19/04

Oh yeah! And as most of you know, we're going to be playing with the greatest testament to Satan since the bible...KOHABIT on the 25th of February at Johnny B's Comedy club. But what most of you don't know, is how truly great these guys are. So here are some pictures for you...yes! I fucking love Kohabit!

Kohabit, Tearing shit up as usual
-Dane "My friends, bruised and borrowed" Goodman

2004-02-17T09:47:00.000-07:00

Eugene mother fucking Oregon

So I guess we're being played on the college radio in Eugene Oregon. That's fucking cool. We're fucking cool.

2004-02-15T02:54:00.000-07:00

So ummmmm yeah, Fuck off.

I'll bet none of you assholes knew that we were recording did ya? Well we are. SURPRISE! But we're not going to pretend like we know anything and set a release date. It's just going to be like "oh yeah, by the way we have new cd's now" so take that!
Listen to Live and Local every sunday night on X-96 (96.3 for all you fucktards who don't already know) from 8:00 to 10:00 in the PM's. I'm in a bad mood so fuck off.
Oh yeah, and ummm also all of our apologies for the lack of web site updating that has been going on. We are people too ya know...we have lifes too ya know. No, just kidding, we're just here to serve you.
No, but for real we're going to work on the whole updating thing. Our beautiful Website Administrator, Brandoni, has just moved in to a new house that seems to be the only place in the free world that does not have any sort of internet access, so we're going to drill a few holes and get really drunk. What is this going to do to help the internet service? Nothing. But we like drinking, and power tools are cool. Fuck off.
-Dane "fuck off" GoodFUCKOFFman.

ps. Did I mention...FUCK OFF? Cuz if I didn't, FUCK OFF! Okay, done. It's just that time of the month folks.

2004-02-08T02:03:00.000-07:00

Fan art
This is a poem that was written by a new fan of ours. She told me that it was inspired by our song Raincheck. It wasn't written through her perspective, but through the eyes of a guy she knows. I think it is beautiful...and if Raincheck had words these would be it. So, enjoy.

There's a girl back home
She'll never be able to forget me
She dreams about me constantly
And as vain as it is for me to say
I will never love her how she wants me too
(She wants me too)

It scares me sometimes
How much she needs me
I prefer solitude
Without her voice ringing in my head
Her infatuation will never be dead

My fingertips can only caress so much skin
All the times I'm intoxicated I feel nothing
Did she know when we met
I was recovering from pills burning through-out my stomach?
The rain reminds me of her
And thats all (The only times I think of her)
Really think of her

She would write about the times we talked
How much it meant and how much it hurt that I left (left)
Well I'm sorry I have a life to live
With love to give
But I can't dedicate forever in her eyes
-Anna Serrone

Yeah...fans are cool. We love you all.
-Dane "Alec doesn't know why I do this" Goodman

2004-02-03T13:43:00.000-07:00

so it's February
And life is a fucking bitch...I'm sorry if that offended any fucking bitches that are reading this entry. I'll try to be more sensitive in my future writing. I'd kill myself, but I'm too pretty to go to prison. And speaking of prison...oral sex is illegal in Utah. What the fuck? No, seriously, what the fuck? How can you make that illegal? It's big brother shit. I urge the youth of this state to engage in oral sex as much as they can. Take every opportunity. We should try to tearn Salt Lake city into an out of control orgy scene. Sodomy, beastiality, dendrophilia, foot fetish shit...you know the works. And let's see if we can get god to show us some fireworks. I don't know...I think the mere existence of Las Vegas discredits the idea of any god that might exist. I mean, that place is a living sin.
Oh yeah, and we've been writing a lot of new material. It's crazy good. CRAZY GOOD!
-Dane "I am the Hydra" Goodman

2004-02-01T02:50:00.000-07:00

Dane's January picks
This month has been filled with all sorts of new music for me. I've just been bored I guess and in the mood to spend some mother fucking money. So that's what I did...and I have some ninja turtles toys, and a bunch of cd's to show for it. The rest went to munchies...which are now gone. Damn! Maybe it's not too late to vomit them back up and save it again...yeah it was just that good. Oh yeah, but back to the music. Okay, here we go.

1. The Mars Volta - De-loused in the Cromatorium
2. The Strokes - Room on fire
3. Alicia Keys - Songs in A minor
4. The Used - Maybe memories
5. Foo Fighters - One by one
6. Bucket Head - ummm...it's a mix, heh. GO BUCKET HEAD!
7. Marilyn Manson - Holywood
8. Dave Mathews Band- Lilly White sessions
9. Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the deaf
10. Him - I can't remember the name of the cd...but they only have one so you should know what I'm talking about.

And that's the fucking awesome music I listened to the most and loved in January. If you want to get your ass handed to you time and time again...listen to that list. Oh yeah, and you can just automagically assume that Half-Step is just on that list so I don't need to put it on there.
-Dane "The Tool Man" Goodman

2004-01-26T11:38:00.000-07:00

Into the sun
The end of the world is coming. I see it every time the visible exhaust seethes out from a combusting engine into the cold mountain air. For those of you who don't believe in global warming and the hole in our ozone layer, you best start believing. Eh...fuck it anymore. I guess you don't have to believe in it, accepting the fact isn't going to fix it. Nothing is going to fix it, that's what is so scary. And nothing is going to destroy cell phones, they are here for life everybody. That's so scary. Especially the ones with gps tracking. Soon the Government is just going to be issuing children cell phones at a certain age with a registered phone number that they must keep for the rest of their lifes. This will ensure that people of power can know where we are at all times. And if you're caught without yours you're fucked.
BOO FOR SNEAKY GOVERNMENT!

-Dane "They're always watching" Goodman

2004-01-20T12:22:00.000-07:00

If you weren't at Kilby...
Then you probably aren't as big of a Half-Step fan as you think you are. Never the less here are some pictures from the show: Half-Step @ Kilby Court 01/17/04
We have some more show dates coming up pretty soon. We'll keep you posted as to when they are. Also, recording for "From the Ashes" will be starting shortly we hope. We're just finishing up writing some of the new shit for it. I'm happy with the direction we're taking with this new album...there's a little bit less hope.
But now I'm tired and I don't feel good so I'm going to stop writing.
-Dane "Go fuck yourself" Goodman

2004-01-10T01:28:00.000-07:00

"If you're not knowing I'm here to let you know"
Okay. People always ask us what we sound like. We don't really know what to say. So they ask us a follow up question that usually goes something along the lines of "well what are your influences?"...and we still don't really know what to say. So, what I am going to do right now is give all of you greedy flies a little insight into what is spinning in my cd player right now. These cd's are not listed in any particular order because they are all number one in my book. And remember, this is not the music that officially "influences the band". These are just my top ten albums of the month of December. Pif and Alec do listen to some of this stuff too, but again, these are just the albums I listened to the most in December, and I am referring them to you.
Dane's Decemeber picks:
1: Josh Holmes and a few other gods - Desert Sessions Volumes 9-10.
2: Rammstein - Live In Berlin
3: Vendetta Red - Between the Never and the Now
4: Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf ( You all MUST buy this NOW! )
5: The Tea Party - Transmission
6: Nirvana - In Utero
7: Half-Step - Half-Step
8: The Doors - L. A. Woman
9: Marilyn Manson - Antichrist Superstar
10: OutKast - Speakerbox/the love below

Well I thought that would be fun to share with you folks...AND IT WAS! Maybe in the beginning of next month I will share with you the songs that rocked me this month!
-Dane "Jerry Springer" Goodman

2004-01-08T14:06:00.000-07:00

Depressio Il
Ding dong man, Ding dong...
...I had this crazy dream last night. Actually, I had this crazy night last night. It was so strange. It went from work, to band practice, to media play, to a late late dinner with a friend, some guy I don't know, and an ex girlfriend...then I hung out with someone I rarely ever talk to for more than five minutes, and then talked to a friend who lives states away for about an hour.
Then in my dream I was hanging out with a bunch of people I don't usually hang out at, in Vegas, and I was buying a lot of drugs. And I was with my other ex girlfriend too. And then my dad and all my little siblings came to our hotel room and we tried to take a family road trip to In-N-0ut. That's all I can really remember about it, but yeah. Wow...glad that's over.
Oh, and just for the record, I just barely woke up and it's two O clock. BOOYAH! I have to go to work in an hour. BOOYAH! fuck Olive Garden.
-Dane "Yellow led better" Goodman

2004-01-06T00:54:00.000-07:00

A little bit about vomiting.
So Today we were having band practice and I felt like I was going to throw up. So then we were taking band pictures for the city arts festival and I was telling everyone that I felt super sick and that I was going to throw up...but they all just laughed at me and called me names. Then I started to cry because it really hurts my feeling super bad when people call me names. But it just made things worse because then Alec called me a weenie. That hurt the worst because I love Alec and we only call people we really hate Weenies. But Pif stuck up for me by saying, "he's not a weeny he's just a cry baby." And actually now that I think about it, that wasn't sticking up for me at all!
Anyway, I got home and threw up three times and now I'm going to do it again. HELL YEAH! I love throwing up it's my favorite thing to do. I throw up after every meal, and after watching a show I really like, and sometimes after really good sex. In fact, if I'm awake it's a safe bet that I'm throwing up. I guess I'm just cool like that.
So let this story be a lesson to you ladies; When people are calling you names because let's say, you're fat, or maybe because you eat too much...then it's perfectly healthy, no, encouraged to go throw up as a way of coping with the stress. I know I do! And look how well I'm turning out!
-Dane "Just brushing my teeth" Goodman

2003-12-30T03:29:00.000-07:00

Greetings from sunny California
Don't worry, I may be back in So Cal for a few days, but that doesn't mean that the Salt Lake City local scene is in any trouble...I'll be back in a few days. I get to drive my BRAND NEW CAR back. ROAD TRIP! It just sucks though because I have to take it alone...but I guess that's better if I want to pick up and murder a few prostitutes while I'm in Vegas. I've found that no matter how much other people say that they're up for murder, they always back out at the last second. And then things get awkward because they know that you've killed someone, and their consciouse is telling them to turn you in, but that's just not going to happen...going to jail is not an option...so you start thinking about burying them up to their neck and leaving them in the desert to the mercy of the sun...and they can always tell what you're thinking. When someone has murder in their eyes you can see it...you can feel it. It's like they are burning holes into you. So nobody sleeps the rest of the way home, talking is pretty much kept to a minimum...and I usually don't like to eat any food just in case the person I am traveling with is trying to pre empt my murder attempt with poison. Basically it just ruins the whole fucking trip. And if you're not careful it can ruin your friendship.
However, when I was traveling through Vegas with Pif and I killed a whore, I was actually quite surprised to hear him suggest that we chop off her limbs and head so that we could stuff her conviniently into a duffle bag we had in the back of the trunk. Then we just drove her to othe airport and gave the bag to a retarded guy wearing a propellor hat...it rocked. I'll bet security freaked out when they X-rayed that thing. I'll bet the tard freaked out more when he got arrested. When we were watching the news the next day it said that he apparently took out three cops while they were trying to cuff him...with his bare hands none the less. The finally gunned him down as he was choking what would have been officer number four. He took 12 bullets to the chest and three to the head before finally kicking it. As it turned out he wasn't even retarded at all, he was just some goofy kid all hopped up on PCP.
Anyway, the moral of this journal entry is that no matter how tough ghetto life seems, remember that a young thugstar selling crack on the street for gun money is really an African prince that can do anything with his life. Don't let those Roman bastards get you down! COMPTON REPRESENT! WEST SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDE!
ps. I got new breaks for my car in compton...they squeek. Fuck Compton. WEST SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIDE!
-Dane "I'm gonna take you over" Goodman.

2003-12-25T00:54:00.000-07:00

Everything seems so wrong
Because it all feels so right.
So, it's Christmas Eve. It's late and I just got off work a couple of hours ago. I don't feel the Christmas Spirit anymore. I used to get excited about it. Even though I knew there was no Santa Clause, it was still the holiday season, and people were still nice to eachother just because of that reason. And it would snow, and everything seemed magical, and as stupid as it sounds it's the truth. We don't even have a real christmas tree this year so our house doesn't even smell like Pine...I mean, what the fuck. And I know what I'm getting because it's two huge boxes stacked on top of one another in exactly the same fashion that you stack a power*** and an *** (heh...I think it's funny how I'm not going to tell you people what my present is, if you haven't figured it out then your S O L buddy). And it's not that it's a bad present by any means, because honestly I am way excited...it's just the fact that I know what it is you know? There's no more mystery or excitement or surprise anymore in anything. Sometimes I contemplate suicide, not because I am sad or depressed or anything, but just because it feels like I can already see my life ahead of me and I don't want it. I don't want to live some shitty life that is the same thing day in and day out, seven days a week. I don't want to just live until I grow old and fat and useless, and then look back on my life and realize that it has been a complete joke.
The only thing that still holds any sort of mystery and intrigue for me anymore is death. I think it is the most beautiful thing we do as humans. Death is so strange because it is frightening, and powerful, and romantic all at the same time. It's like having a fear of the dark but multiplied beyond belief. People will tell you that they know what happens when you die. They can say that they have talked to God, or seen angels, or sold their soul to Satan, but you can't trust people...the only true way to find out what happens after death is to die...and dead men tell no tales.
I wonder if you have to go through death alone. I would imagine that your entire body gets warm...things go fuzzy, all light gets a halo around them kind of like it does when you're really tired. I'll bet that when your brain freaks out and starts to randomly fire off synapsis you get a complete feeling of euphoria...and then maybe your family that has died before you will be there. Maybe just one person. Maybe Jesus...or maybe you just stop and there is nothing magical or mysterious about it at all. Maybe your brain stops working, and suddenly you're just a toy without a battery. Nothing more, nothing less. And everything you worked so hard to achieve in your life is now worthless...your family and friends (if you're lucky enough to have any) will watch your body be lowered into the ground, and they will hope that right now you are looking down on them and smiling and waiting for them to join you...but you're not. You're eyes are staring blankly at the wooden underside of the lid to your coffin, but you're not looking. You're not doing anything. You're just decomposing, turning to slosh, being eaten, feeding the earth...in fact, you are not even you anymore, only in physical resembalance. Just a corpse. Fertelizer. food. bones. slush. organs, shit, and hair...
...merry Christmas everyone.

2003-12-21T11:44:00.000-07:00

Hello, is there anybody out there?
If you people are reading this journal, you should leave little remarks just to let us know you were here, because I am painfully insecure and I need constant reassurance that you all still love me...much like God. Yeah, that's right...I just put myself up on the same level as God (or maybe I brought God up to the same level as me)...no apologies.
So anyway, these last few weeks have been shitty. We played that tottaly bitchin show at Kilby, and then suddenly Christmas started to take full affect. It's tottaly fucked us over. The Olive Garden is bussier than ever, so I am working six days a week, and I never get to see Pif or Alec, and we never get to jam. It's fucking horrible. Not to mention the three hundred dollars in three days that I spent on Christmas presents for people who probably won't care anyway. I probably won't even have any contact with some of these people in a few years...but still I spend/waste my money on them in the "spirit" of the holidays. Plus, it's snowing. Bah-Fucking-Humbug. Fuck snow, Fuck Olive Garden, Fuck Christmas, Fuck not practicing, fuck hair, fuck uniforms, fuck Utah, and if you're reading this and not leaving a comment...fuck you too.
however, on the plus side. I do get to go back home to Orange County in a few days. That's going to be sweet ass. I'll bring everyone back a present.

2003-12-14T23:50:00.000-07:00

This one goes out to all the ladies
The topic of a "dream girl" came up a little while ago...and I was sitting around thinking about what I think my dream girl would be like. So you want to know what I look for in a girl eh? Well let me tell ya.
Hair color isn't really all that important to me. Black, Blonde, Brunette, Purple, red, blue...whatever, I couldn't really care less. In fact, the carpet and the drapes don't even have to match.
Pretty eyes are a must though. the color doesn't matter as long as they are mysterious, maybe a little bit of a dark outline...not too big, but definitely not squinty. I hate squinty
eyes. God knows I hate squinty eyes...
Good lips and a cute nose are also important. These aren't really something that I can say I have any kind of cookie cutter idea in my head of what they should be like, all I know is that the two can compliment eachother...oh yeah, and a good smile is a must.
Sex is good, skanks are bad.
I also like girls that can be super bitchy some times. And I don't mean bitchy like a total, slashing up tires and throwing my shit out of a window, bitch...I mean bitchy like, a disregard for common decency. I want a girl who is going to make fun of fat, handicapped, and ugly people with me. But at the same time...they have to have enough control over the bitchiness to know that it's not cool to be bitchy to me...unless I deserve it. And I'll be the judge of that.
Good bodies are a must, but I can't say that there is one type of "good body" out there. Everyone just has what fits them best...I do however like a smaller breast and a perky ass! Yup...you heard it here first, I'm a total ass man...
And then with all the bitchiness and asses and old people assaulting, she has to find time to be sweet too...I know I know, I'm asking a lot here, but damnit, this is my fantasy girl I can request anything the fuck I want!
And finally, she has to like Half-Step. That's kind of a given though on account of the fact that I just don't talk to people who don't like Half-Step. I don't like girls who have shitty taste in music...I mean, I guess I can excuse a few shitty bands if they absolutely must like a few songs by such shit suckers as, A simple Plan, Dashboard, or (insert shitty emo band here), because what girl doesn't like that shit? But all in all they have to have respect for ass kickers like Queens of the Stone Age, Marilyn Manson, Tool, Half-Step, and Dave Mathews Band (just to name a few).
Oh yeah...and LED ZEPPELIN RULES BITCH!
-Dane

2003-12-12T17:19:00.000-07:00

You read it here first
As most of you know, Alec, Pif, and I have written a lot of new songs since we've released our self titled cd...titled, Half-Step, just in case you have forgotten the name of our band. And none of you really know the names of the songs, or the lyrics for that matter. Well, I'm here to give them to you. You're getting them even before Brandon has enough time to post them up in our lyrics section. I'm going to do this one song at a time though. The first one I have here for you is "from the ashes" the title track to our upcoming cd...titled from the ashes, just in case you don't understand that a title track shares the same name as the title of the album. So without further ado...

FROM THE ASHES
"I want you to hear me scream, lay back and deliver me from this cross that I've nailed myself to.
I don't ask much of you, but you're here and I'm not so I'll teach myself to feed on the ashes...and I ask myself, "How can I live when all is wrong?"
Plead with a sky that has no God...
maybe I'm lost for something
maybe I'm lost while heaven waits...

Lord pass this cup from me...I don't have the strength to drink this wine that's pouring from your wounds.
And I ask myself, "how can I live when all is wrong?"
plead with a sky that has no God...
maybe I'm lost for something
maybe I'm lost while heaven waits...

A wave of calm washes over me
A wave of calm crashes over me...
And I ask myself, "how can I live when all is wrong?"
plead with a sky that has no God
maybe I'm lost for something
maybe I'm lost while heaven waits...covered in ashes."
-Dane

2003-12-09T14:51:00.000-07:00

we are live and local
And don't you forget it. last nights show at kilby court was definitely of the rocking variety. It kind of sucks that the other two bands were too pussy to play with rock gods, but it was also a good thing...for two reasons actually
Reason number one: we didn't have to sit through two other shitty bands that are too pussy to play with rock gods like us
Reason number two: the guys of Kilby Court were forced to recognize that every single person there came to see Half-Step.
There was also this really cool feeling to it having everyone there be there just for us...it had this vibe like a private show, so I really felt free to do and say whatever the hell I wanted. However, I did not call the audience "Mother Fuckers", not even once! That's how good they were! WOOHOO! Go audience! But yeah...we fucking rocked. And there wasn't any mexican radio coming through my amp either...stupid mother fucking hippies.
To anyone who didn't make it to the show, I take pity on your souls. And to Brandie, the lovely DJ of underground local music!, WE LOVE YOU AND THANK YOU FOR COMING!
We hope to have t-shirts ready at our upcoming shows, so make sure your wallets are pregnant with love for your favorite boys of rock and roll debauchory! Because it's time to give us money!
-Dane

2003-12-07T02:47:00.000-07:00

It's not "Hip" to be young
Well the show we played tonight was strange. There were a lot of hippies and art fags there. I guess it was in down town Salt Lake City though, so what else would you really expect? It's not so much that I hate hippies and art fags, because I like a few choice people from those "scenes", as they call it...it's just that we're not hippie music, and we're not art fag music. We're rock and roll...and some people can't get their "open minds" around that concept. These people were into indie shit I'd bet...And Weezer. They think the perfect ingridients to a song are Heart break, over analyzation, and pretentious dickishness. Well you know what have step says to that? NAY! You mother fuckers...NAY! We take your broken heart, your thinking brain, and your stuck up dick and we throw it all into a blender until we have a nice sauce, then we pour the sauce over a little Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll casserole that we made. KAPOW BITCH! Now that's a song! These people didn't agree, so they didn't pay much attention to us.
After we played, a few people told us that they thought we were under appreciated, which kind of made us feel better. And the owner of the place payed us $20.00 for one of our cd's which was cool. I don't think he would have done that if he wasn't so drunk though...I later saw him laying, face to the sky, on the sidewalk as I was leaving. Then some other girl told us that she thought we were good for how young we were. Yeah? Well fuck you whore. I think You look old for how old you are, so now what? BRING IT CUNT! And then finally this really nice lady, named Chelsea, told us how good she thought we were, and she thought it was funny that in between every song we would look at the audience, who wasn't looking at us, and call them "Mother fuckers". According to her we called the Audience "Mother fuckers" a grand total of 27 times...so I gave her a free cd and told her that she was "the coolest mother fucker here".
I loved it though...I thought it was great fun. We rocked the fuck out. Seriously, my neck is killing me right now. I don't know how I'm going to work in the morning if I'm all sore everywhere.
Mental Floss was bad ass. They kind of fell under the same prediciment as we did. For some reason the mother fuckers didn't come and watch them either. Everyone was super stoked to see The Rodeo Boys play though...and I can't say I blame them. I was pretty impressed with those guys. They gave me a cd for free. We're expecting a much more enthusiastic crowd on Monday night though. It better be, or else all of your souls are mine!
-Dane

2003-12-06T11:12:00.000-07:00

I think we need a doctor at tonights show
Well, as many of you do not know, we're going to be playing a small little set tonight for the cd release party of an awesome band called Mental Floss. These guys rock. I'm friends with the bass player, Adam, he's so fucking rad! He lives on a boat out on the Great Salt Lake. How cool is that? Alec and I decided that we want to live on a boat and write under water music, every night before we went to bed we would jam out on "under the sea" from the Little Mermaid. It doesn't get much cooler than that.
But back to the show...I think I'm getting sick. Seriously, it way sucks. My sinuses are killing me and I'm all disoriented and what not, this is the shittiest thing ever, because I really really want to rock to my full rock potentiol tonight. I'm just going to get all hopped up on cold medicine I guess, and do my best. Maybe if I just keep telling myself that I'm not sick, it will go away...because telling myself that I am sure doesn't seem like the working solution right now.
Oh, and my good friend Matt is in town. I LOVE YOU MATT! He's here from California (my beautiful polluted home!) to hang out with his favorite serial killers, Half-Step, and maybe make some sweet sweet love down by the fire with some hot mormon pussy! But first we need to find mormon pussy, and that my friends is no easy task!
I just got off the phone with Alec...he's getting sick too. Oh well. THE HUNT FOR MORMONS IS ON!
-Dane

2003-12-04T19:05:00.000-07:00

I can't write right now...it would be way too weird.
-Dane

2003-12-04T03:25:00.000-07:00

On flight musicals and God
so I guess this is my first time really posting in here. I've decided that I'm not going to fuck around and waste everyones time being giggly and excited about writing in here. Instead I'm going to talk about God...a very serious subject. This isn't a lecture, or an essay, but you can take it as either if you want...and then you can take it up the ass for being a square, because only a square would look at a journal entrie in a bands diary as a lecture or an essay. So here we go.
God. Wow...what do you say about God? He either doesn't exist, or he doesn't have time for us. Have you ever prayed, and when your words stop you realize that you are surrounded by nothing but silence...and you realize that you are alone, and suddenly prayer becomes talking to yourself. Wether he exists or not, he wasn't listening...there was something better on. With no God to be there for us the world becomes a similar experience as learning to ride a bike. It's that feeling when you realized that your dad has let go of you...you look back and realize you're flying solo and you just start thinking, "What the fuck? He lied to me...he promised me he wouldn't let go! And he's smiling at me...bastard! Doesn't he realize I'm going to die?". And that's when you smack into the tree...thank god you were wearing a helmet. And I use the word, "God", loosely.
The fuel of choice for God is faith. Premium grade of course...unfortunately the arabs hored it all from us...but the price seems to be greater for them. Heh, that was a funny joke because by greater price I meant to emply that they are killing eachother all the time. War in the streets, suicide bombers, children with guns. It's pretty kick ass, and personally I think it would make a cool musical. Do Arabs do musicals? Heh...maybe they would perform an on flight performance...ewww, that was bad. I'm a naughty boy. Wow...the concept of an on board musical starring nothing but terrorists has actually lifted my spirits to the point where I don't feel cheated and beguiled by God right now...so I'm going to change my focus to Olive Garden.
Fuck you Olive Garden. You have worms in your Zupa Tuscana...your food is unsanitary in so many ways, and you work your employees for eight hour shifts with no lunch break...fuck, the employees aren't even ALLOWED to eat during their eight hour shift. Your food is over priced and not even cooked by authentic Italians. So again I say, "Fuck you Olive Garden...fuck you in your fucking ass."
- Dane

2003-12-01T15:07:00.000-07:00

It is time.
Behold the online Journal of your once and future King.