Muffuletta: A tale of two sandwiches

On my recent trip to New Orleans, I had a two objectives.  One was to have a good time with friends at a great show.  The other was more of a personal mission.  I wanted to settle the muffuletta debate once and for all:  who had the best?  Traditionally, in every mention of a muffuletta, Central Grocery is in the next breath.  I’ve had my share of their sandwiches, and they were good, but they weren’t my favorite.  Recently there has been a resurgence of people telling me that Central Grocery is the place to get a great Italian sandwhich, so I thought I’d take this opportunity to compare my favorite with theirs. 

Napoleon House has been in New Orleans for 200 years.  It’s one of my favorite places to take a break from the outside world.  It looks 200 years old, they always play classical music, and they know how to make a drink and great food.  I think they also make the best muffuletta I’ve ever tried.  They serve it warm so that the cheese is barely melted and the beautiful deli meats are giving off oils and flavor that would be muted if served cold. The bread is always perfectly chewy but the crust is crispy.  The star of the show, though, is the olive salad.  Why is it better?  I don’t have one answer, I think it’s a combination of things.  Good quality olive oil is the start, along with the normal components of chopped green and calamata olives, cauliflower, celery, carrots, and pepperocinis.  They also include things I don’t see in the grocery store version, like lima beans.  They make a surprisingly great accompaniment to the savory and acidic mix of oil and vinegar and vegetable medley.  When you lift the bread For my money, there isn’t a better muffuletta anywhere.  And by the way, this place is very affordable.

On Friday night, we arrived at Napoleon House after walking through the streets in a torrential downpour.  It was cozy and warm from the gas heaters.  The lighting was dim and the music was soft.  It was a perfect night.  I ordered a half muff, an Abita beer, and a pimms cup.  The pimms cup is a refreshing drink of pimm’s gin and a lemonade-like mix garnished with a cucumber slice.  The muffuletta was perfect as always.  I was very happy.

My plan was to go to the grocery the next day to get their muff to compare.  I forgot they’re closed on Sunday.  So I went to Napoleon House to get another one.  I forgot they are closed on Sunday, too.  So I went to Johnny’s poboys.  They have a muff, also.  You can get theirs warm or cold, I guess that’s one bonus.  I took it warm and to go, and ate it at home.  I have to say, Johnny makes a pretty good sandwhich.  I’ve had his poboys, and they were good, but I’d never had the muff.  It didn’t beat my favorite, but it was very worthy and I’d eat it again any Sunday. 

So, for now I guess I haven’t solved anything.  I didn’t get to contrast the two big boys of the muffuletta world, but I added a new player to the game.  At least I know where to go on Sunday in the quarter when I crave one thing and one thing only, the muffuletta.

John Prine – Live at HOB

John Prine is a living legend, though nobody seems to know it.  If you ask 100 people on the street who he is, 99 will have no idea.  I guess that could depend on what street you’re on.  Watching the show the other night, I felt privileged to be there.  The band included Prine on acoustic guitar, Jason Wilbur on guitar, harmonica, and mandolin, and Dave Jacques on standup and electric bass.  They played for over two hours.  Most songs I knew, some more than others.  A few songs were new to me.  All of them were played with enthusiasm, as if it were their last show.  Anybody who would go to a John Prine concert and not like it is un-American, hates the baby Jesus, and drowns puppies and kittens.  That’s the truth.

RIP – Nathan Slade

I wish you hadn’t left so early.

Lowlight Playlist

*NOTE:  The playlist is no longer here because Imeem was purchased by MySpace.  You can still look up the songs if you’re curious.

Here is a playlist for my last post.  For some reason most of these are 3o second clips.  For the real playlist with complete songs click the link at the top of the last post.  You may have to sign up for the site, but it’s free and worth it.

P.S.  If you are at work and your company blocks youtube or other videos you probably won’t see anything.  Check it out when you get home!

 

more about “Lowlight Playlist“, posted with vodpod

Favorite Creepy Songs (for Halloween or not)

Click here to listen to these songs.
It’s pretty close to Halloween, and I started thinking about music to put on a playlist.  I realized, though, all the songs I was thinking of are songs that I play whether it’s devil’s night or not.  I’ve always had an affinity for dark sounding music.  I think because I love the mood it sets.  Ray Charles even said “the nighttime is the right time.”  Of course, he was blind so how would he know?  Plus I think he was talking about love-making, and I’m referring to an overall moody and dimly lit scene, bonus if I get some sexy time with a nice young lady.  Think lights turned off in a big room with lots of candles and maybe some colored lights.  The windows are open and the wind is blowing the curtains gently.  There’s a waft of nag champa in the air, and connecting everything is what I like to call the soundtrack of the night.  You could really screw up the scene by playing the wrong music.  So what should be on?  Well there could be a million good choices.  Some that I don’t have on the list are Jesus and Mary Chain, Joy Division, Miles Davis, Shostakovich, Sisters of Mercy, Arvo Part, Portishead, The Doors, Interpol, Frontline Assembly, Leonard Cohen, David Bowie, etc., etc.

So here is a list of songs I would put on my Samhain playlist (for any night of the year), in no particular order, because that would be way too difficult and would change every day.

1. Electric Hellfire Club – Where Violence is Golden
This is a band that has been around for a long time with their tongues planted firmly in their cheeks.  Lot’s of satanic imagery and lyrics.  They also a bunch of samples from horror movies and serial killer recordings.  This is probably the most evil sounding song on the list, so don’t let it scare you off.

2.  Project Pitchfork – Swamp of Secrecy
Now here is a fun little number.  With UFO themes and audio samples that are I think from recordings after the Roswell incident, this is from the album IO, the only album of theirs I would endorse.  It has an off kilter beat and sci-fi noises, what more could you want?

3.  NIN – Something I Can Never Have
I think we all know how I feel about Nine Inch Nails, one of my favorite bands.  This is probably the slowest tempo song in the catalog, and may be the most melancholy.  This song sets the mood like no other.

4. Jocylen Pook – Masked Ball
Here’s one you’ve probably never heard of.  I first heard a version of this on the Eyes Wide Shut movie.  This is a strange song from the album Flood.  The entire EWS soundtrack is really good.  This song is supposedly a recording of Russian Orthodox monks chanting that wasn’t quite creepy enough so they flipped the tape and played it backwards.  Mission accomplished.

5. Nusrat Fatah Ali Khan  - Taboo
Here is probably one of the most gifted vocalists in the world, and most Americans have no idea who he is.  He sings Qawali, a traditional middle eastern style.  Ali’s vocals can be found on a lot of house style techno music, but I like him without all the extra stuff.  His voice is truly an instrument.  This is one where he is working with Peter Gabriel, who composed the music for the Last Temptation of Christ soundtrack.

6. The Cure – Hanging Garden
Hanging Garden comes from the Pornagraphy album, one of their first. I think this could be my favorite of all their records. The album was released in 1981. Holy crap! That’s almost 30 years ago. I don’t want to talk about it anymore. Just listen.

7. Bauhaus – Bela Lugosi’s Dead
Bauhaus (bow-house) is one of the quintessential goth bands of the 80′s. This song is a classic. It’s quiet and dark and the vocals have that great echo effect. Also check out their song “Cry Little Sister” which was the theme song for the movie The Lost Boys.

8. Danzig – Can’t Speak
Most people know Danzig for the song “Mother”. This one is much better, I think. Glenn Danzig used to be in a band called Samhain, which is an ancient Gaelic celebration that is thought to be the root of Halloween.

9. Stabbing Westward – Red on White
A great song from the first Stabbing Westward album. This album didn’t have any radio play. So they fired everybody but the singer before making the next album. That’s when you started hearing about Stabbing Westward and hearing the songs on the radio. This album is way better than any of the following ones.

10. Massive Attack – Angel
I don’t know a lot about Massive Attack. I know I love this song. It has a great droning sound in the background and the vocals are sultry and seductive. This was playing while Lindsey Lohan was on the stripper pole in the movie I know Who Killed Me. I liked the movie, and the whole soundtrack. I’m not sure why everybody said it was the worst movie of all time.

11. My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult – Daisy Chain 4 Satan
Nobody does sleazy disco/rock like TKK. Then they sprinkle some sex, drugs, and satan on top. I saw them play a show one time and got to talk to a few of them after the show. One of the drummers known as Beat Mistress wanted me to ride the bus with them to Houston. I chickened out, thinking that they could have had ritual sacrifice in mind. Maybe it would have just been a good time, but I’m still breathing right now.

12. Deadboy and the Elephant Men – Strange Television
If I had to name my favorite rock vocalist of all time, it would probably be Dax Riggs. Dax started as the frontman for one of the heaviest and best swamp metal bands of all time, Acid Bath. Then followed Agents of Oblivion, Deadboy and the Elephant Men, T-Dax and his White Plastic Soul, and now just plain Dax Riggs. This is from the album If This is Hell Then We Are Lucky. I can’t even describe the voice, but I could listen to this all day.

Sunday at the HOB

Since I’m working T-F this week, I went to House of Blues Sunday to see a couple of bands play.  I had never heard of the bands, but figured it would be fun anyway since I was going with a friend.  The show was Vedera openining up for Matt Kearney.  Some of Kearney’s songs I had heard before, but didn’t know it was him.  The opening band’s frontman was a frontwoman, and she had a set of pipes on her.  I liked the songs.  I’ve been listening to them via the internet since the show.  Her voice is one of those that can transfer the emotions of a song from simple words to something physical that washes over me and makes me feel the same.    Anyway, I’ve included some material for you to listen/view.  Maybe you’ll like it, too.

http://www.vederamusic.net/

On another note, something happened during the show that sparked a debate later.  I struck up a converasation with a girl standing near me during Matt Kearney.  We spoke only a few sentences to each other.  I found it strange that she was there by herself, a really attractive girl in her mid 20′s.  She was on her Blackberry checking email for at least fifteen minutes before the show started.  I finally said something to her and she said she had been out of town for a week, checking emails on her computer, so her phone showed them as new.  As I pressed further, she said she had been in Bali.  We only said a few things more to each other, but she didn’t talk to anyone else.  About the middle of the show she asked me to save her spot while she went to the restroom and to get a beer.  I told her of course I would.  Then she offered to buy me a beer.  I told her that wasn’t necessary.  Upon her return she told me thank you.  That was the last thing she said to me.  When the show was over she turned and left.  I saw her on the sidewalk when we were leaving, alone and on her Blackberry again.  I wanted to say something but I couldn’t think of anything that didn’t sound stupid or creepy in my head.  So I will probably never see her again.

I mentioned the beer thing to my buddy later.  He said there is no way I should have turned down her offer to buy me the beer.  I don’t know if he’s right, but she didn’t speak to me again after that, except for the “Thank you.”  Did I offend her?  I hope not.  In today’s world it is not easy know the rules of engagement.  I thought I was saying “you don’t have to pay me to be a nice guy and save your spot.”  Apparently what I was saying was “I don’t want your stinking beer.”  I have so much to figure out, and I’m running out of time.

Alice Cooper Still Rocks

So I went to see Alice Cooper in concert Friday night at the Paragon Casino in Marksville, Louisiana.  I’ve never been a huge fan, but I heard he puts on one hell of a show.  I can now say the claims are true.  It was indeed a spectacle.  I believe it is the “Theater of Death” tour.  That name is appropriate.  I think he either killed or was killed at least five times.  This sixty-two year old man was running around the stage nonstop for almost two hours.  The show employed all kinds of props and effects.  He had the classic guillotine, and was hung from a gallows.  One thing that should not be lost in the theatrics, his band absolutely FN rocks.  They are great, every one of them.
The showroom at the casino was the perfect size.  I don’t think there is a bad seat in the house.  They had really good sound, too.  Let’s hope more rock acts come there, because I can’t wait to see another show at the Paragon.  It’s a bonus that I get to spend time with my brother when I go there.  If you get a chance to see Alice Cooper, you should.  Surprisingly, the tickets were pretty cheap compared to most of the casino circuit acts.  Check it out.