Well, my obsession with nerd rap continues. Last Thursday, mc chris returned to the area for a proper Kansas City show. He's bringing two bands with him on this tour, but I was most excited about finally getting to see his local support, Bacon Shoe.

I don't know if Bacon Shoe self identifies as Nerdcore, but I will take it upon my own authority to badge them as such. Seeing this shirt, I knew I was among my people. Being the nerd that I am, I was the first in line for the show. This was not intentional, I just didn't know that they wouldn't be opening their doors until 8:00. I showed up at 7:50 and walked up just as two people were being turned away at the door. So I waited the ten minutes dutifully outside, and that's one fewer beer that the Hurricane sold that evening.

I did make it in and had a few before Bacon Shoe took the stage. Either I had consumed enough beers that I couldn't hold the camera straight, or Lethal D and Toine wouldn't stand still. It's probably some combination of both. This was my first time at a proper Bacon Shoe show. I saw Lethal D and Toine call Bingo a while ago, and they performed a few songs, but it wasn't a proper show.

For example, Bacon Shoe Bingo at The Brick did not feature Mr. Ruggles on the bacon. Ruggles was on his game, and I got the last piece of bacon served that night. It was crispy, but not too crispy, and delicious.

At Bingo Night they didn't play any of the songs available at the website. Thursday night's show only featured Broken Pencil from the album. All the stuff was good. Lethal D reminded us that he was in fact the Gonorrhea Man. Toine reminded us that his name was in fact Toine. And he busted some moves. The show was all too short.

I remedied this by seeing Bacon Shoe headline at Mike's Tavern last night. Unfortunately I forgot my camera. If I had remembered my camera, I would have been able to bring you pictures of Sedated, Kansas City's only Horrorcore artist. That show featured one of the best simulated disembowlings I've seen this week.

But I digress. Bacon Shoe's set was all too short, and they were followed by The Ergs. I have little to say about The Ergs. They were a servicable rock band. Their set was enjoyable, but I have little to say about it.

The Ergs were followed by Snmnmnm. That's pronounced ess-en-em-en-em-en-em. My mnemonic device for remembering this band's name is that it's what you'd call a band consisting a devotee of the Marquis de Sade and a white rapper from Detroit.

And I do need to remember this band. My tastes are simple, but what I miss more than anything is brass in rock bands. These guys had it in droves.

First off, they had a tuba in lieu of a bass. This is a technique that doesn't get enough use. Big Smith employs this technique when they perform Backwater (well, a sousaphone to be precise), and of course there's Drums and Tuba, but other than that it's not something I've seen much. The Tubist had his tuba running through a microphone, several effects pedals and an amp, and could do some funky stuff with it.

They went full on brass band for one song, the guitar player whipping out a trumpet and the keyboardist deploying a trombone. They had chops. It worked.

But leaving aside the brass factor, they were just a good band. Their songs were catchy and fun, they had good chemistry on the stage, and were just a lot of fun to watch. They definitely had a sort of They Might Be Giants feel, and I don't think I'm saying that just because of the one song which featured accordion. If they made it back to Kansas City at some point, I'd definitely head out and see them again. I'm listening to some tracks I downloaded off their website right now and considering a CD purchase.

Then there was one more act. mc chris took the stage following Snmnmnm. I saw mc chris back in July and was somewhat underwhelmed. Maybe he was having an off night, but I just wasn't feeling it from him. The show was enjoyable if only for his between song banter, but he was having equipment problems, and he seemed to rely pretty heavily on what sounded like a backup vocal track.

Not so last Thursday. He was on and performed an awesome set. He hit a bunch of my favorites... Ten Tear Old, Hijack, First Date, DQ Blizzard, Robotussin, Fuckin' Up My Christmas, and he opened up with Fett's Vette.

Then a few songs into his set, he said "Let's get Toine up here."

And he did.

And he got down, as only Toine can.

So it was a good night. mc chris sold out The Bottleneck in Lawrence back in July, but that was an all ages show and during the summer. This one was 21+ until just a few days before the show when they made it 18+. The crowd wasn't as big as back in July, and mc chris didn't get the crazy amount of audience participation he got at the Lawrence show.

I had a great night though, and I highly recommend an evening of mc chris if he should make it through your town. You won't get to eat bacon at other venues unless you bring your own though.

My personal hero Gilbert Brown is appartently working out with the Chiefs:

Chiefs look at Gilbert: Former Packers nose tackle Gilbert Brown worked out for the Kansas City Chiefs on Tuesday, according to the Kansas City Star. The Chiefs’ starting nose tackle, Ryan Sims, has been out since the first game of the regular season because of a foot injury. Brown last played in the NFL in 2003.

Holy lord. Signing Brown would turn me from a half-assed Chiefs fan to a weekly watcher. Plus, if he's in town, maybe they'll roll him out at some public event and I can get my jersey signed.

Dang, Big Gil back in the league. That would be awesome.

As a bonus, we at Gimpysoft.com bring you a picture of our dog. No reason, we just love dog blogging.

Well, we're not there just yet, but my first costume party of the season was last Saturday. I got an invite from jpp over at The Badda Blog to join his group to a costume party at which his friends have won Best Group Costume four years running. I don't remember the last time I've dressed up properly for a costume party, but I was down. I got the group theme from Jason: Girl Scouts/Brownies. Hey, what is Halloween for if not for a bit of low-grade drag. Underage drag just adds to the fun.

I headed out to the local grocery store to get some supplies. I bought some patches and sized sashes. (Surprisingly enough, they don't make a Brownie sash in my size.) Merit badges needed to be purchased from the Girl Scouts Regional Center on the east side, so that waited for later.

I sacrificed one of my blue dress shirts, and Bex's mom sewed some cute cuffs on the sleeves. We stitched two sashes together, and on Tuesday I made the run to the Girl Scouts Regional Center. Now, many of the patches the Brownies wear are sold at sporting goods stores and local grocery stores. The merit badges are sold only at official Girl Scouts stores, since they must be earned. I have no official ties to the Girl Scouts organization, and would be straight out unable to answer any questions about why I needed to purchase fifteen single Try-Its.

I had a whole back story concocted. I was a Bad Dad. My wife had sent me to pick some things up from the Girl Scout Store, but I knew nothing about the scouts. My wife normally handles all of that, she just asked me to come out and pick up these patches. Security was not quite as tight as I had originally imagined, and I left with my patches.

I spent Saturday ironing on patches and putting the final touches on the uniform. I got dressed, Bex's sister came by my house, and we left. I remembered to buy beer, but unfortunately forgot to buy my Brownie Beanie. Was this our downfall? The world may never know.

Vlad and I made it out to jpp's sweet KCK pad. Jason and Sarah were putting the finishing touches on their costumes, and others in the group were milling about downstairs. Jason and Sarah came downstairs and it looked like we were ready to head out. Did I mention that the women were all pregnant Brownies? Class.

Off to Lee's Summit. Our group got to the party before some of the rest of the troop. We waited patiently so we could make a group entrance. The rest of the group arrived and we headed in.

I had waffled on a wig, and I think I made the wrong decision. The rest of the troop looked very good in their wigs, and I was wrong to worry about the beard/wig combo. It worked fine for the goateed members of our troop.

The party was very well put together. They had karaoke, beer, liquor, finger foods, and it was one of the most thoroughly costumed costume parties I've ever attended.

Our troop (troop 69, natch) chose "Like A Virgin" as our group song. I think I was a bit too close to the microphone, so I'm glad I was on the back side of the speakers. I'm just not a good singer. Did that earn us minus points?

Something did, because the hosts soon awarded the prizes. What was this? Best Group Prize to the Refrigerator Magnet Poetry guys? Yeah, it's an interesting concept, but jeans with white t-shirts with words printed on them? Come on, couldn't they have done better with it than that?

A complaint has been filed, but it sounds like we'll be licking our wounds until next year. Next year, I need to remember to costume the head as well. A little makeup wouldn't hurt, either.

Dang, so I put together a Pick 'Em pool for all the folks out there, and then forget to make my picks before the deadline for the second time in two weeks. I didn't realize it until I was out at the bar to catch Sunday's game, but I looked up the schedule and jotted my picks down on a coaster. Though I've once again comprimised the integrity of our contest, I've entered my picks at Poolhost.com. it looks like Gerg pulled into the lead on the season this week with 80 total correct picks. Raj and marc remain a few games back at 78.

I remain far, far behind, panting to catch up with a mere 62 correct picks.

Come on guys, wait up...

Hey! A win! And they looked pretty good doing it!

It's a good week for music here in KC. Tonight is the Steve Kimock Band over in Lawrence. Surprisingly enough, I will not be heading out there because Drums & Tuba are playing right here in town at The Brick with That One Guy. Though Kimock's lineup looks good on this tour, there are several strikes against him. Number one, it's not a Chester's show. His music is pretty quiet, and there's just something different about seeing him with a quiet, attentive crowd. That certainly won't be the case out at The Granada.

Number two, Drums & Tuba is right in town rather than half an hour away in Larrytown. Numbe three, That One Guy is appearing with them. I saw him open for D&T a few years ago and have been hoping I'd get to see him again sometime. Opening again for Drums & Tuba is a show I'm not going to pass up. Plus, I think Bex would be more likely to enjoy Drums & Tuba than she would Kimock.

Tomorrow we're going to see The New Pronographers. I've listened to one of their CDs a few times, and it's enjoyable, but this is mainly Bex's show.

The big news comes on Friday when The Pitch celebrates their 25th anniversary by putting on a concert. Alacartoona opens the show. I've been somewhat interested in seeing her for a while now, but have never made it out for one of her shows. I'll definitely be heading out this Friday because The Violent Femmes are headlining the show. Whoever at The Pitch is responsible for this show is to be thanked. That show is going to be awesome.

Fuck.

Packers - Just aren't very good.
Chiefs - I guess that depends on how they do against Philly today.
Texans - Just aren't very good.
Vikings - Still suck.

Fantasy Football leagues:
Pals' league: Getting my ass handed to me.
Newbie league: Sitting about in the middle.
Bex's work league: Chewing bubblegum, kicking ass. Bubblegum supplies dangerously low.

The Gimpysoft Football Pick 'Em continues. marc remains in the lead with 56.53% correct picks. Raj follows closely at a perfect 50%. Gerg and I remain far, far behind.