Toddy V

I'd like to meet:

Justin Sullivan as he's the most amazing songwriter and performer I've ever heard (no wait, I've met him)

Brian VanderArk - if you don't know him maybe you would have heard of the band The Verve Pipe, classic rock but his solo stuff is acoustic genius with lyric mastery and he is amazing in concert. Check out www.bvamusic.com! Ok, so I met him a few times but it was such a thrill that I had to share! Oh and he recently did 2 private shows at MY HOUSE!!

Jason Gilardi, Scott Jones, Mark Haugh, and Jimmy Newquist - The Spine crew have been rockin me for years. About 80-100 shows and still enjoying every one. Oh that's right, I've met them a hundred times!

Martin Rotsey, Rob Hirst, and Jim Moginie - My favorite group of great guys on the planet. Amazing songwriters, performers and even better people. No wait, scratch that, I've met them already.

Marty Paschke - After seeing the band BLIND live around the Fox Valley a lot throughout the late 90's, I have since met him and feel I'm a much better person for having him as a friend. Crap, that means I met him already too!

Phil Marshall - Songwriter extrodinairre, if you haven't checked out www.philmarshall.biz, then you should! Cheers Mate! You were great to talked to, ooops, that's right.

Hmmm, ok so the only 3 people I really can think of that I have not yet met is STEVEN WILSON of Porcupine Tree (and his millions of other side projects). Amazing what this guys has accomplished in the last 10 years! RAINE MAIDA of Our Lady Peace and his current solo project is out of this world and BUTCH WALKER as his music is excellent and his live shows are just a blast!

Music:

I listen to all sorts of music so this is by no means all of the bands/artists but more of a brief overview!

Truly excellent singer songwriter performers like Brian Vander Ark (check www.bvamusic.com) Whether listening to him live or on CD you get the feeling that he is pouring himself into his songs and I cannot understand how he isn't hugely famous, he is the tops for me right now. He recently RELEASED a recording I personally made of a concert in my living room! And his 3rd solo CD, titled Brian Vander Ark, JUST CAME OUT! and the new songs he previewed at my house were ridiculously good.

A recent favorite of mine is from a band that I love, OUR LADY PEACE, their lead singer put out his first solo CD recently. Raine Maida's new cd titled A HUNTER'S LULLABY is INCREDIBLE with so many excellent songs. His wife is a trained pianist and quite the singer/songwriter herself and adds so much to the album as well. This is one that cannot be missed.Another of my recent favorites is PORCUPINE TREE from the UK, this progressive rock band has their own genre of music and is incredible live. Their new CD that just came out contains my second favorite song ANESTHETIZE which is nearly 18 minutes long.New Model Army is the cream of the crop after the passing of the Oils, if you haven't checked them out, you are missing out! Their Ninth studio album came out in the fall of 2005 and its as solid as every release.

Their 10th album HIGH just came out and it is as incredible as every release they have had, I love it! They are the most passionate live band on the planet, too bad of freaking government denied their requests for temporary VISAs for the fall tour and they had to cancel, why do I get that feeling that everyone in Washington is a bumbling idiot, is that a prerequisite for politics?!?!?!?Midnight Oil is one of the best bands ever live and truly great individuals, I've seen them in concert about 20 times from Los Angeles, San Francisco, to Chicago, Toronto and NYC! Don't mess with Hirst, Rotsey and Moginie!!Also check out Caroline's Spine as they have endured and had a new CD out in January 2007. Rumor has it that lead singer Jimmy Newquist will have a national solo release coming out in early 2008, I'm sure it will be a CD not to be missed!There are many others as well including The Verve Pipe, Revis, Alice in Chains, Love Spit Love, Tool, Fuel, Echo7 and many others.

Movies:

Lord of the Rings, The Ring, The Matrix, Batman Begins, Star Wars original trilogy, Stargate

Television:

Alias, MXC, Seinfeld, Smallville, X-Files, Stargate SG1

Books:

Angels & Demons, The DaVinci Code, Digital Fortress, Deception Point, Battlefield Earth, Pet Cemetery, Eragon/Eldest, and The Lord of the Rings/The Hobbit

Heroes:

Justin Sullivan, Brian Vander Ark, Martin Rotsey, Jim Moginie, Rob Hirst, Steven Wilson