Ty Tells You How each NBA Team Can Win the Title: Nets, 76ers, and Lakers

In what will become a yearly tradition, I will count down all 30 NBA teams, from worst to best, prior to the start of the season. The regular season kicks off on October 25th, so I figured there was no better time than 2 weeks before to give you guys and girls my rankings and predictions. This will span the next 10 days, but I will sprinkle in some of my other stuff, i.e. "Ty Watches", and other pop culture things, but the NBA will be my main focus for the rest of this week, and most of next week.

Okay, enough foreplay, let's get to it.

Coming in at number 30, the worst team in the NBA in the 2016-17 season will be...the Brooklyn Nets. You thought I would pick the 76ers, they'll be on this list very soon, but I think the Nets will be slightly worse. The Nets are a dumpster fire. They have a few quality players, well, maybe only Brook Lopez, but other than him, this team is either too young, too overrated, or just plain bad. But wait you say, they signed Jeremy Lin and Luis Scola this offseason. I say, so what. Why Jeremy Lin worked in Charlotte was because he wasn't the first option. He was instant offense off the bench. In Brooklyn, he will be the guy, and that does not bode well for the Nets. Scola is old, slow, can't score anymore and is a liability on defense. Brook Lopez is a very good throwback center, but he is oft injured, but he will do his thing, but it won't matter because he has little to no help. He will probably miss some games too, as he always does. The fact that he didn't miss a game last year was a total outlier. That won't happen again. The rest of the roster is filled with guys like Randy Foye, Bojan Bogdanovic, Anthony Bennett and Grevies Vasquez. Does that sound like any kind of good NBA team? I didn't think so. The rookies they picked are so so. Caris Levert, who I root for because he played at Michigan, cannot stay healthy. Yogi Ferrell is smart, but slow and small. The NBA is going to be a grind for him. The Nets will be lucky to win 20 games this year. Bill Simmons should be thrilled because the Celtics are going to be picking in the lottery once again, the Nets owe their pick to them, because the Nets stink. This team is a mess and they will be a mess all year. I feel bad for Brook Lopez because he is legitimately good, he just has no help.

So Ty, how will the Nets win the title? The only way the Nets will win the title is if every other team decides to tank, and that is still a total longshot.

Coming in at number 29, the Philadelphia 76ers. I have been harder on the 76ers than most, but they finally rid themselves of the mess that was Sam Hinkie and "trusting the process". That was a complete waste of 4 years, the 76ers became a joke and I felt that I could play for that team. They are still a terrible team, but they have the look of a team that may, at the very least, try to win some games this year. I mean, they only won 10 all of last year, so there is nowhere to go but up. I know that their first pick, and the top overall pick in the draft, Ben Simmons, is out with a foot injury, but they should still be slightly better than 10 wins. The bummer with the Simmons injury, if you are a 76ers fan, that kid needs to play NBA games. He has no jumper and looks a tad slow right now. He needs that game experience because he is the type of player that will get better when he plays top level competition. But, the 76ers do get to finally see Joel Embiid, after 2 lost years. He has played in a preseason game, so I'm going to assume he will be playing when the season starts. He looked good during the preseason game too. He has great feet and is a decent low post scorer. He could be a decent defender too. Time will tell, but I'd be optimistic that Embiid could be a good NBA player. Nerlens Noel, who is forever on the trading block, is a very good defender and rebounder, but he has no offensive game whatsoever. He is a skinny version of DeAndre Jordan, but I think Noel is a better defender. He will probably be traded though. Jahlil Okafor is a good scorer, but he is an average rebounder and a terrible defender. He is also a hothead, so who knows how many games he'll play. Dario Saric is supposed to finally come over to the NBA, and he looks pretty good. He is a lot like Simmons, just 4 inches shorter. A lot of people have been waiting to see this guy play, me included, and he is supposed to be pretty good. But, who knows. Other than these guys, the 76ers roster stinks. Elton Brand is a million years old. Nik Stauskas is a bust. Jerami Grant cannot slow himself down and is always out of control. Jerryd Bayless is a poor three point shooter, which is his "specialty". This team is lousy. I do like the young guys, but they have too many big men, and Simmons is going to miss a lot of time. They 76ers will win more than 10 games, but they won't get to 20. They are, as I said before, only marginally better than the Nets, but both teams stink.

So Ty, how will the 76ers win the title? The same goes with the 76ers title chances as goes with the Nets title chances. They need every other team to have massive injuries and they still won't win anything close to a title.

Coming in at number 28, I have the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers finally got the Kobe Bryant problem off their books with his retirement. He was the main reason this historic franchise has been a gutter team for the past 4 years. I'm thrilled that he is done in the NBA. This roster is young, and could be good in about 3 or 4 years, but they do not have the players to compete right now. I do like the hiring of Luke Walton, but only for the Lakers. I thought Walton could have gotten a better job, but I'm sure he wanted to go back to the franchise that he played for. I get it, I just think it was a poor choice from Walton. Like I said, they have a good young nucleus, they just aren't ready to compete for anything important. Julius Randle is a very good low post scorer, and he could turn into a decent defender. Brandon Ingram was one of the few young guys I liked in the draft, but he needs to gain weight and start to look like he cares about basketball. He is a little too lax looking when he is on the court, and veterans will exploit that. Jordan Clarkson is a star in the making and he will thrive now that Bryant is gone. He can score anywhere on the court, and he can be a good defender, if he commits himself. The jury is still out on D'Angelo Russell. Will he learn from mistakes last year, or will he continue to be a locker room pariah? Can he score at an elite level? Can he defend the better point guards in the league? Can he play a whole season? Can he become a leader? These are all questions that have no answers right now. Russell will show this season if he is going to be worth the number 2 pick, or if he is going to be a bust. Then, their free agent class is a joke. Loul Deng, old and slow, Timofey Mozgov, couldn't see the court after the all star break for the Cavs last season, Yi Jianlian, who hasn't been in the NBA for years and was crushed by NBA players in the Olympics and Metta World Peace, didn't he retire a few years ago, just terrible. This team is going to be at the bottom of the league until the young players develop. The Lakers have proven to not be a free agent destiny in the past few years for star free agents, so they have had to build via the draft. They may be the first team to crack 20 wins, but that is it, 20 wins. The Lakers stink, and they will continue to stink until they land a big time free agent, or the young players develop.

So Ty, how will the Lakers win the title? The only chance the Lakers have to win the title is if they trade for Russell Westbrook, just re upped with OKC, Kevin Love, is he even elite anymore and one more big time player, and that is not happening.

That's it for day one. come back tomorrow for numbers 27, 26 and 25.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He was on the draft board for the 76ers, they just wanted him to sit for 15 years first. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of generous donors. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Ty Watches Bar Rescue: Russell City Bar and Grill Edition

This past Sunday, Jon Taffer and crew visited the bar "Russell City Bar and Grill", with plans to rescue it. Right off the bat, you could see the problems.

The episode started out with the bartending staff and the owner yelling over one another and arguing about nonsense. We come to find out that none of the employees respect the owner. They walk all over him. They drink behind the bar. They try and make fights happen on a regular basis. They fight with each other in front of the customers. The staff is a mess. It doesn't help that the owner is, as I have said, a total pushover. He seems like a meek man, and he definitely lets his staff tell him what to do. To make matters worse, he seems to check out at times. He lets the crazies run the asylum basically.

The owner has a friend of his, "Church" that he hangs out with at the bar every night. The two are old friends, and Church is there every night. Church gives nothing to the bar, except frustration. He walks behind the bar and pours his own drinks. He takes money when he wants. He yells at the bartenders. And, in this episode, he started a fistfight with one of the bartenders, and it was violent. The bartender asked him nicely, twice, to leave from behind the bar, but Church ignored him. After a third time, the bartender, who was totally in the right in my opinion, started to throw punches. Church refused to listen, and he acted as if he was an owner. The bartender beat the hell out of him, and I loved it.

Once the fight was finally broken up, Taffer and crew walked in to assess all the damage. This was a shit show from the start. First off, the bartender that beat up Church quit, and walked out on the spot. He just vanished. Then, instead of telling Church to leave, the owner blamed his bartenders for the bad behavior. Taffer was completely baffled. He could not believe what was happening.

The next day, the experts came in to try and train the people, after a long night of cleaning. The bar and the kitchen were an absolute mess. the bar top looked like it hadn't been cleaned in months, and the kitchen was ten times worse. There were grease traps filled everywhere. The kitchen was an absolute fire hazard.

So, after they cleaned, the experts came in to do work. The mixologist trained the current staff on some simple drinks for stress test. The chef expert changed the menu to some easier, more cost effective menu items. During stress test, it was a nightmare. Food and drinks were being made okay, but they were going to the wrong people, they were late and they were bad. The main problem was the owner. The bartenders actually did a very good job of trying to keep up. They were making drinks as fast and as well as they could. The kitchen staff was even stepping up, but the food was not going to the correct place, or if it was delivered to the right place, it was late and cold. This all fell on the owner, as he was the runner that night. Instead of owning up to his mistakes, he blamed his staff and told them that they were "making him look bad". This guy was a piece of work. Ranging from not kicking Church out of his bar, falling asleep during training, asking his parents for more money even though he was almost 300,000 dollars in debt, basically everything he did, it blew up in his face. But, he took no ownership.

When Taffer and the experts laid into him, he actually seemed to start to figure it out. He took accountability. He professed to paying his parents back and to be stronger as an owner. He legitimately made a 180 on his personality. It was astounding.

As Taffer and crew were fixing up the bar, we got the first ever cut away to a black screen with writing that I have ever seen. The owner and his crew were talking about the new changes, and the owner said that they were going to be splitting tips from now on. This is pretty customary stuff at any type of service industry job. But, the staff freaked out on him. They yelled and called him names. They were furious. The owner pushed back, but he was totally valid. He explained how much better this would be, and he was right. But, the whole crew, except the kitchen staff and one bartender, quit on him one day before reopen. He hired a new staff, and it was for the best. The new staff worked very hard at relaunch, and they seemed to be much more even keeled. I didn't think that they would save the bar, but they pulled it off at the last minute.

Taffer changed the name to "Fogline", another dumb name, and gave them a bunch of new POS systems, all typical "Bar Rescue" stuff. After the new bar opened, sales were up and things seemed on the up and up. This was a crazy episode filled with yelling from everyone, except for Taffer. Taffer actually kept his cool, shockingly.

Come back next week for the next review, and watch "Bar Rescue", it's been so great this season.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. His advice on saving a bar is do not open the bar to begin with. We have enough crappy ones already. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of generous donors. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

"Westworld" is the Apple Pencil of Television Shows

Still better than the high tech version.

HBO premiered the long in production "Westworld" television show last Sunday (October 2nd), and the internet has gone nuts. The AV Club, IO9, EW, Time, all the usual suspects who love any HBO show predictably gave "Westworld" high marks. These are the same critics that loved "Vinyl", "John from Cincinnati", and "The Newsroom", so take their advice with caution. Critics at Vox, the Washington Post, and the New York Times were not as praiseworthy, but still found round about ways to find value in watching week to week. Similar to when Apple announces a new product, the zealots overtly praise and everyone else highlight what is good while trying to explain away what is bad. HBO is the Apple of television, and "Westworld" is its Apple Pencil.

Here at SeedSing, we did not receive the first four episodes of "Westworld" like the outlets mentioned. We can only review the show based on the pilot episode "The Original". The first fifteen minutes were amazing. In this introduction we are introduced to James Marsden Teddy Flood. Flood is waking up on a train completing its journey to the old west theme park of the future. As the audience, we know that Flood s heading to a theme park, so no explanation is needed. The false vistas of the old west and the town of Sweetwater look incredible. "Westworld" has the best set design and cinematographers in television. Flood passes a few archetypes of the American old west, the potential of a mid town dual, the sheriff's posse assembling to take out the outlaw, the prostitutes offering their special services. Teddy Flood has no interest in any of these things, he is here to meet back up with a girl. 

The girl is Dolores Abernathy, played expertly by Evan Rachel Wood. It is quite obvious that Dolores is one of the androids, or "hosts" as they are called by the staff. Teddy seems to be playing out a romantic story line with Dolores, and "Westworld" kicks off with a little bit of hope.

That hope does not last long once we get back to the Abernathy ranch. Outlaws have killed Dolores's mother and father. The outlaws drink milk, like all creepy people do. Teddy draws his pistol and guns down the outlaws, playing out the story to be the hero. Then we get a glimpse of the unnamed, dressed in all black, Ed Harris character. Harris is not a good man, and Teddy Flood has his weapon ready to take the evil man down. Here the story takes a turn, Harris is seemingly a guest and Teddy Flood is revealed to be a host. Hosts cannot kill the guests. The Westworld park exists to allow people to live out their fantasies, no matter how depraved, with the hosts as the guests tools. Harris kills Teddy and takes Dolores to barn so he can rape her. "Westworld" had our attention after this great opening.

Once we get an inside look at the behind the scenes brains behind the park, "Westworld" goes off the rails. Jeffery Wright's Bernard Lowe and Luke Hemsworth's Stubbs was ok, and the brief scenes with Anthony Hopkins's Dr. Robert Ford were pretty good, but the scenes with Sidse Babett Knudsen and Simon Quaterman were downright terrible. They may be good actors, but every time Knudsen and Quaterman were on screen, I almost turned off the television. Their dialogue was awful, and their delivery was even worse. No amount of pretty scenery can make up for cringe inducing moments "Westworld" devoted to Knudsens's corporate stooge Theresa Cullen and Quaterman's  guest experience writer Lee Sizemore.

"Westworld" gives us these terrible performances because it is trying so damn hard to be an edgy HBO show. Gratuitous lesbian kiss with no meaning, check. Copious amounts of violence and unnecessary nudity, well of course they have it. Liberal use of the "f" word, hey it's HBO. We are by no means against these things, when there is a point. Outside of the violence, none of these other HBO show staples had any purpose other than to be shocking. "Game of Thrones" did not win multiple Emmy's because of nudity, but the creators behind "Westworld" seem to think that is part of the recipe. It was distracting and took away from the show when one has to question why someone is nude, and how many times can Quarterman say the "f" word until it is a noun, verb, adjective, and adverb? The promising beginning of "Westworld" was completely undone by the distracting need for the show to be an "HBO show".

The bad performances and distracting edginess is not even the worse part of "The Original". The music of the show will make you miss key plot points. Many other writers have praised "Westworld" for using modern tunes like "Black Hole Sun" and "Paint it Black" rearranged as being played on an old 19th century player piano, but it was a bad choice. The music is recognizable enough to make the audience have to play name that tune while the show is trying to move the story forward. It is once again a directorial choice that was made to be edgy, and it turned out being bad.

The entire pretension of "Westworld" is also fairly weak. With the great opening scene, and the awfulness that followed, it is obvious that the show wants you to side with the hosts. Every single guest that was shown in "The Original" is a terrible human being who only wants to do terrible things. We are led to believe that the Westworld park is meant to be like a modern open world video game. It seems that the creators spent ten minutes on Xbox live and learned that anyone who plays a video game is a monster. "Westworld" gives inner life to the random NPCs (non player characters) and wants you to care about their dreams. It is an intriguing idea, but when the humans are just blank evil archetypes, the metaphor gets a little lost. Again a great idea ruined by terrible execution.

Many of the other reviews for "Westworld" urge the audience to wait the show out until the fourth episode. That is not the deal television makes with its audience. A great show should have a pilot episode that asks the audience to come back. We talked about some of these great pilots that captured our minds, for better or worse. The new "Battlestar Galactica" , another show based off of an old cheesy seventies piece of entertainment, started with a miniseries to gauge the audience's interest. If we needed four hours of "Westworld" to get involved, then producers JJ Abrams, Jonathan Nolan, and Lisa Joy Nolan should have made a miniseries first. A bad pilot can turn may people away from the next few episodes that will explain things. At least the miniseries would give people some closure after the first terrible hour.

Every year Apple unveils the newest and greatest thing mankind has ever known. Supposed tech journalist sites like The Verge, CNET, Ars Technica, and many others will give non-stop praise to anything Apple in hopes of clicks and recognition that never comes from Cupertino. In reality, many times Apple will release a new adequate piece of equipment, and sometimes they hit a huge home run. Every once in a while Apple will release something just flat out dumb. The Apple Pencil is such an item. There was no need for it. It was poorly executed, in that what good is it when Apple has been telling how great your fingers are for doing things. It was a copy of things done better before. It looked pretty, but had nothing to make it essential. The zealots fell for it, everyone else quickly forgot. "Westworld" is the Apple Pencil of television.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He talks a big game but may end up giving "Westworld" a few more episodes. It is really pretty like his Apple Pencil.

SeedSing is funded by a group of generous donors. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Ty Watches the "Eric Andre Show" Season 4 Episode 8

Man oh man, what a weird, wild and hilarious episode of "The Eric Andre Show" this past Friday. This episode was full on crazy, in a good way. I loved how absolutely nuts the whole thing was.

The show opened as usual. Andre destroyed the set. He beat up the drummer and his kit. Some weird stuff happened between Andre and the "Hannibal 9000" robot. Instead of breaking the metal shelf this time, Andre used it as a jumping off point and crushed his desk. It was the usual insanity that I have grown to enjoy with every open. After all this, Hannibal Buress was introduced, and he showed up on stage on a "magic carpet". It looked pretty ragged, and there were a few times that I thought Buress was going to fall off. After Buress took his seat, Andre said something to him, it was so quiet, I couldn't understand, and he approached the microphone to do his monologue. Once again, instead of a traditional monologue, Andre berated Buress. He was saying mean and hurtful stuff to try and get under Buress' skin. Throughout the whole monologue, Buress said nothing. This made Andre angry, so he pushed even further. Buress finally responded, but he was saying inspirational stuff, and he said he wouldn't let Andre take him down. Then, at the very end of the monologue, after being so upbeat, Buress finally stooped to Andre's level, and insulted him right back. We then got the freeze frame, "we'll be right back" screen.

Next, they jumped to a pre taped segment, introducing the character that wants to be the Sprite spokesman. This bit started out with a focus group debating the Android and iPhone, then all of the sudden, Andre crashed through the roof, with a parachute that didn't fully work. He got up and started to stumble around, asking everyone if this was the Sprite building. This bit is bizarre, but also hilarious. The people in the focus group were terrified, and then they were pushed to anger. One guy was psychically trying to remove Andre from the room. The whole time, Andre just kept saying that he just wants to be the spokesman for Sprite. Then, at the very end, his head popped off, and a bunch of Sprite was shooting from his neck.

Cut to the main stage and they introduced their first guest, Chris Jericho. Jericho literally said 4 words before this interview went off the rails. He walked to his seat, heard the fake audience, and spoke his 4 words, "where is the audience?". Then, Andre went into the interview, and asked his first question. The question was just Andre screaming in the air. He was saying nothing. During this, Buress was eating a sandwich, very sloppily, and making weird noises the whole time, and Jericho looked legitimately confused. He stood up, and walked off the set. That was the shortest, and most bizarre interview I have ever seen on the show.

They cut to another pre taped segment called "Judge Eric" after that. Andre was dressed like a judge, and he walked into a sandwich shop and ordered a sandwich, but used judge terms while ordering. He also had a gavel with him. After finishing his order, Andre started to smash the glass in the shop with his gavel. The patrons were all freaked out by this, and a police officer showed up. But, the police officer was an actor friend of Andre's, and while he was bringing order back to the shop, he pulled out his "member". This freaked out the patrons more than before. Instead of being worried himself, Andre walked out with the "police officer", and said that he ruled that he did not want the sandwich anymore. The look of horror on the other people's faces as they walked out was priceless.

We then got out next guest, Roy Hibbert. Hibbert is an NBA player, and Andre asked him some nonsense questions about being a basketball player. Hibbert tried to answer, but was immediately thrown off when Andre stripped fully nude. Hibbert told him that he wouldn't answer anymore questions until he put clothes on, but Andre wouldn't listen. He kept pushing and pushing, and Buress was doing some virtual reality stuff, and the "Hannibal 9000" even showed up for a minute. Hibbert grabbed a bat and was using it to shoo away Andre. Hibbert was as freaked out as Jericho was earlier. Needless to say, he walked, more so ran, off the stage.

After this interview, they cut to a new segment that had Andre walking around downtown New York, holding a mattress with the words "BED BUGS!" written in permanent marker on it. He kept asking people if they would take the matress from him, and basically throwing it at random strangers on the subway or in the streets. I loved this.

We got our last guest after this bit. The final guest was Flavor Flav. This may be a first, but Flav was more bizarre and less coherent than Andre has ever been on the show. He was talking all nonsense. He was making no sense. So, Andre decided to strip nude again, and Flav became enraged by this. He told everyone on set that he was going to beat them up. He kept running away from Andre. At one point, they cut to Buress kicking a doll version of Flav in the face.

After all this insanity, we got to the final segment, and instead of having a guest, Flavor Flav and a guy dressed in a green screen, skin tight suit having a dance off. This, again all from Flav, was so weird. Flav was dancing and moving around, as was the other person, but it was so bizarre.

This episode was incredibly nuts, but one of the best of the show that I have ever seen. It was bizarre and weird and disgusting and hilarious in all the right ways. This was excellent. Go watch Flavor Flav because he has clearly lost his mind, and it was very prevelent during this most recent episode of "The Eric Andre Show". Man, what a great episode.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Before he lost a lot of weight, Ty would go to the supermarket in a skin tight green suit. Being thin does not make it quite as funny. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of generous donors. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Get All of Your Winners in Ty's Second Annual MLB Playoff Preview

Check out Ty's MLB season preview and judge for yourself how well he did.

In what I'm sure will become a yearly tradition with SeedSing, I will do my own MLB playoff prediction to go up against RD's playoff picks. Last year I was way off, I think I had the Blue Jays winning it all, and David Price being the MVP. So hopefully this year, I do better. Now, right off the bat, I do not know as much about baseball as RD does. I know a whole lot, but RD puts more time and effort than anyone I know that watches baseball. I'd much rather be playing baseball than watching it. The games are too long and boring. The playoffs up the ante, but I don't find myself that excited until the World Series. This is also the first time the Cardinals have not been in the postseason since 2010, so I may be even more checked out. But, I want to make my picks anyway.

Lets get started.

First off, we have the 2 wild card games. In the NL, we have the San Francisco Giants going up against the New York Mets. I did not think that these would be the 2 wild card teams from the NL. It's an even year, so I figured the Giants would coast to a division and World Series title, but they have struggled mightily since the All Star break. The Mets were in the World Series last year, and they had everyone back. They looked prime to be, at the very least, a near lock for the NLCS. But, injuries and players not playing up to the task put them in the position they sit in now. I think this game will be a great pitchers duel. That is the main thing that both of these teams have going for them. I'm sure San Francisco will throw Madison Bumgarner and the Mets will put Noah Syndergaard on the mound. This will be a very good match up, and whichever pitcher makes one mistake, I say Syndergaard, the other team will capitalize. I have the Giants winning the NL wild card game in a very close and low scoring affair.

In the AL wild card game we have the Toronto Blue Jays and the Baltimore Orioles. I was very big on the Blue Jays this year. I thought they had the best lineup in baseball, and they'd cruise to a division title. But, they proved that pitching is important, and that you can't just outscore everyone. The Orioles kind of surprised me. I thought that they would be, at best, a .500 team, but they put together a pretty good year. They have a pretty good lineup, and decent pitching. They have one of the best closers in the game as well. This match up is a total toss up for me. I could see either team winning. I do know that it will be higher scoring than the NL wild card game, and I'm going to go with the Orioles. I think that guys like Manny Machado and Chris Davis will carry this team to a victory, with the score being something very high like 8-6 or 9-7.

With the Giants and Orioles advancing, now we get to the real playoffs. I will do the AL first and finish off with the NL. After Baltimore beats Toronto, that means they will face the number one team in the AL in the Texas Rangers. Now, if you go back and listen to the midseason mini X Millennial Man podcast that RD and I did, I said I loved all the moves the Rangers made at the trade deadline, and thought that Prince Fielder going down was a blessing in disguise. I legitimately think that they are the team to beat in the AL. They already have guys like Adrian Beltre and Nelson Cruz. Then, they added Carlos Beltran and Johnathan Lucroy to that lineup. They also have Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish in their starting rotation. I love the Rangers, and Baltimore won't be able to hang with them. I see the Rangers sweeping them out in 3 non competitive games.

In the other matchup we have Cleveland and Boston. Oh, how I love the fact that Terry Francona gets to face the Red Sox. I also think the Red Sox, and their fans, are a little too cocky going into this series. I have loved what David Ortiz has done in his final season, and they have a very good lineup, but Cleveland is no slouch. They play excellent small ball baseball, and they have a very good rotation. Boston is good at scoring a lot of runs, but keep them in close games, and they aren't so great. I think that will doom them in this series against Cleveland. Cleveland is very comfortable with close games and Boston is not. I also love the fact that Terry Francona will have a chance to beat Boston, the team that cast him off. I have Cleveland winning in 5.

That means we will have a Cleveland-Texas ALCS. Strength against strength. Great pitching versus great hitting. This series will be good, but Texas is so loaded. They have a lethal lineup, and their pitching staff is just as good, if not better, than Cleveland's. As I said, I really like the Rangers right now, and I think they will beat the Indians in 6 games to advance to the World Series.

In the NL, the Giants "prize" for beating the Mets will be a showdown with the Cubs. The Cubs are far and away the best team in baseball. They are loaded absolutely everywhere. I know that some people have gotten on me for being hard on the Cubs, but you can go back and read anything I have written about baseball this year and see that I have picked the Cubs to be the champs. The same can be said for listening to any baseball related podcast. I may despise the Cubs, but they are so very talented. The Giants may make this series closer than it should be, but the Cubs should win it in 4 games. They have great, dependable and reliable hitters 1 through 8, and their pitching staff is amazing. This is the year where the Giants winning the World Series in even numbered years will end.

The other NL matchup pits the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Washington Nationals. The Dodgers have a good, but very old lineup. They also have a good pitching staff, led by Clayton Kershaw, but he does not show up in the playoffs. The Nationals, on the other hand, they have a loaded lineup, third only to the Cubs and the Rangers, and a great pitching staff. The Nationals may blow a game or 2, but not even Dusty Baker will blow this first round matchup. I have the Nationals winning in 4, and I think this is where Bryce Harper will bust out of his slump, in a big way.

That leaves us with the Cubs and Nationals in the NLCS. This is a great matchup, but I just don't see how the Cubs don't win, and win convincingly. Their lineup is better. Their coach is better. Their pitching staff 1-5 is better. They have a better home field advantage. Everything is in the Cubs favor. I don't even think this series will go 6 games, even though it should be a 7 game series easily. Dusty Baker chokes in the playoffs, and the Cubs are just too good this year. I have the Cubs winning in 5, because Max Scherzer will get one win for the Nationals.

So, that means the 2016 World Series, in my opinion, will be Texas and Chicago. This is the best matchup that we could have. They were both the top seed in their league. They both had the best record in their league. They both have good coaches that know what they are doing. They both have home run hitters and on base guys. They both have very good pitching staffs. It's a great matchup. This series should, and probably will, go 7 games. The one advantage the Cubs have over the Rangers is the depth with their pitching staff, and that will be the difference. I, and this is very hard to write, see the Cubs breaking the curse and winning the World Series in 7 games. They are just too good, and they should be the odds on favorites. They were the best team in the regular season, and I don't see that stopping now. Cubs fans cannot use the "we're cursed, so I don't want to get my hopes up", or the "just wait and see, I don't to get my hopes up" excuses anymore. This team was bought to win right now. Not next year, or the year after, but right now. The Chicago Cubs are out of excuses. They have the best team, far and away, in baseball, and I think they finally break through and win this year. And, as much as I'd like to see someone like Jason Heyward or  Dexter Fowler or Ben Zobrist win the World Series MVP, it will inevitably be either Kris Bryant or Anthony Rizzo because the MLB likes lily white rich boys to be the face of their game.

But anyway, as much as it stinks to say, the Cubs will win, and I will not watch "Sportscenter", if they begin to talk about the Cubs, for the next year. It will be so insane and fanboyish, I will have to turn it off.

It is going to be terrible.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He needs to take a rest because the last two paragraphs were the hardest things he has ever written. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

The SeedSing 2016 MLB Playoff Preview

The briskness of October is upon us, time for some Major League Baseball playoffs.

Full disclosure here. We were way wrong about the Boston Red Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Pittsburgh Pirates. The Red Sox were solid all year and pulled away in September from Baltimore and Toronto to win the AL East. We did not think Boston had the offense to compete, and boy were we wrong. Led by retiring David Ortiz, the Red Sox were an offensive juggernaut and a scary force entering the playoffs. The Diamondbacks and Pirates were both big underachievers this year, especially Arizona. Both teams could never get going and both were sellers at the trade deadline. Arizona and Pittsburgh are too talented to be sub .500 teams and should be competitive next year. 

Now onto the actual playoffs. In the AL "Play in Game" the Toronto Blue Jays will host the Baltimore Orioles. Both of these teams have the talent to win this game and make it all the way to the World Series. Each team is a good balance of pitching and offense. Toronto seemed to underachieve a bit this year, but Orioles Manager Buck Showalter does what he always does, he got the most out of his players. In a go anyway game, Toronto will use their better talent, and home field advantage, to win the one game playoff.

The NL game will have every other year champion the San Francisco Giants visiting last year's NL pennant winner the New York Mets. The Giants have great pitching, and in one game that is all you need. The Mets are hot, and did add some much needed offense at the trade deadline, but San Francisco has the advantage with their pitchers. Plus, it is an even numbered year and that works for the Giants.

With the one game playoff out of the way, the Division series will kick off with the Red Sox visiting the Cleveland Indians. As stated before, the Red Sox have an incredible offense led by MVP candidate David Ortiz. The Indians have been one of the most consistent teams in the MLB, and they have the best manager in all of baseball with Terry Francona. Boston will steal a game, but Cleveland will advance to the League Championship series in four.

The other American League series will feature the Blue Jays facing off against the loaded Texas Rangers. Texas made some big acquisitions at the trade deadline this year, and they are in World Series or bust mode. The Blue Jays will have their one game playoff win, but Texas may very well sweep them in the division series.

The National League division series will kick off with LA Dodgers going across country to meet up with the Washington Nationals. The Nationals were great during the season, even with reigning MVP Bryce Harper having a sub par (for him) season. The issue once again is manager Dusty Baker. He is incredible during the regular season, but tends to get out managed in the playoffs. The Dodgers have their stars healthy. Clayton Kershaw will exorcise some playoff demons, and the retired Vin Scully will be able to enjoy a few more games when LA beats Washington in a great five game series.

The Cubs will continue their magically season when the Giants come to town. Chicago has been as good as everyone thought they would be. The Cubs have it all, and added more at the trade deadline. It may be an even year, but the Cubs are way to good to not beat the Giants in four games.

The American League Championship Series will pit the Ranger's talent against the genius of Terry Francona. The Indians are another long suffering franchise, but Cleveland is on the up when it comes to sports championships. When things get tight, LeBron James will come into the Indians locker room and remind the players that Cleveland is a city of champions. It may be irrational, but it seems destiny to put the Cleveland Indians down as American League Pennant winners. It will take seven glorious games, but the tribe will return to the series for the first time in over twenty years.

Scully's Dodgers will roll into the northside of Chicago to take on the Cubs in the National League Championship. Kershaw, off of a great Division series, will steal a game at Wrigley. Unfortunately that will be the last Dodger win of the 2016 season. The Cubs are just way to good. It will only take five games for the 2016 Cubs to rightfully claim the  NL Pennant.

The 2016 World Series will pit the long suffering Cleveland Indians against the longer suffering Chicago Cubs. One fan base will be able to erase generations worth of heartbreak. It will be the Redemption World Series. The two best managers in all of baseball will challenge each other in a one for the ages seven game clash. Joe Maddon and Terry Francona will have their respective teams tasting the title. Late in game seven, lets say top of the 13th inning, LeBron James will appear in the center field bleachers, and Cleveland will remember that they are the city of champions. Home run, and three straight strikeouts in the bottom of the inning. The Cleveland Indians will be the 2016 Major League Baseball World Series Champions.

Better luck next year Cubbies.

RD 

RD is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He just cannot put the Cubs down as champions, not now, not ever. Tell RD why he is so misguided by writing for SeedSing.

SeedSing is funded by a group of generous donors. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

The Ohio Problem: The Capitulation of Ted Strickland

Ohio has once again become ground zero for Presidential politics. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump desperately need to win the Buckeye state. Professional surrogates and dedicated volunteers have been dispatched all over the state to gain us much ground as possible for their respective major party nominee. With early voting about to begin, the battle for Ohio’s electoral votes has begun.

Here we go again.

The voters in Ohio will not only be casting their votes for President this October and November, they will also vote for a number of local officials and one national Senator. Republican incumbent Rob Portman will face off against former Democratic Governor Ted Strickland. There are a few fringe party candidates on the ticket, but the real race is between Portman and Strickland. Both candidates faced primary opponents, with Portman winning with no struggle and Strickland easily besting upstart Cincinnati Councilman PG Sittenfeld. The Democratic and Republican candidates have spent two years, or longer, preparing for the 2016 Ohio Senate race through back door strategy meetings and very public fundraising. Outside of the race for President, the Ohio Senate election has captured the minds, and opinions, of all registered Buckeye voters.

With a few weeks left in the 2016 election, Republican Rob Portman has been assumed as the victor in the Ohio Senate race. The polls give Portman a commanding lead over Democrat Strickland. The money is still steadily coming in for Portman, while the Strickland is cutting staff and cancelling ad buys. The race for President is still a tossup in Ohio, the race for Senate ended in the summer.

The Ohio Problem has once again been a detrimental force to any Democrat who is not the Presidential nominee. A big reason Ted Strickland decided to run for the US Senate was his tight relationship with the Clintons. It was thought having Strickland on the ticket would further enhance Hillary Clinton’s ability to win Ohio’s crucial electoral votes. Unfortunately, once Republican nominee Donald Trump started to close the gap in Ohio, the Clinton campaign started to consolidate as much of the money and manpower in the state. Since Strickland was willingly playing second fiddle to the Presidential nominee, there were no table scraps left for the former governor. The political operatives in Ohio starved their own homegrown candidate so the national party could once again consume every available resource. A contest at the national level meant no time for a race at the state level. The people of Ohio were once again told a Democratic President is so much more important than any state representation in Washington DC.

Governor Ted Strickland never had the chance, or the will, to mount a credible campaign against Republican Senator Rob Portman. During the Democratic Primary, Councilman Sittenfeld was travelling the state and running ads portraying his vision for Ohio and America. Strickland ran no ads, traveled only to meet with Democratic Party leaders, and refused to debate Sittenfeld. Once the primary was over, Portman started to conduct voter outreach while Strickland only appeared in public to promote Hillary Clinton. In the middle of the summer, ads painting Ted Strickland as a bad choice for Ohio started to appear on the airwaves all over the state. No ads supporting Strickland could be found. By the end of the summer, Senator Portman was being featured in ads as a positive, and inspirational figure for Ohio. The only time anyone would see and hear Ted Strickland’s name were in ads that highlighted the failures of the former Governor. By Labor Day, the race between Portman and Strickland was already cast as a race between the positive Republican incumbent who cared for Ohioans, and the out of touch and failure to the people that is the Democrat Strickland. First week of September, Portman and his political allies put the Ohio Senate race away.

Many things said about Ted Strickland’s time as Governor were true, when all context is removed. Ohio did see many economic problems during the Democrat’s four years in Columbus. Ted Strickland easily won the Ohio Governor election in 2006, and officially took office in 2007. Strickland inherited a state teetering economically due to the corruption of the previous governor’s regime, Republican Bob Taft. As Strickland was getting his policies in place to heal Ohio’s economic woes, the 2008 economic collapse hit the nation. Ohio, like most of the nation, was in financial hot water due to the terrible economic decisions made by the Bush administration in Washington DC. Ohio lost jobs, Ohio lost economic stability, and Ted Strickland was governor. With a reelection bid only two short years away, Governor Strickland had to move fast. New President Barrack Obama was interested in spurring economic growth with upgrades to the US passenger rail system. Ohio was to be the recipient of some of these infrastructure funds to create a high speed passenger rail line from Cleveland to Cincinnati. Other new economic measures were being put in motion by Governor Strickland’s office all the way up to the 2010 election. The future was looking a little brighter for the Buckeye state.

Even after the 2008 economic collapse, the 2010 contest looked like an easy reelection for Governor Strickland. The Republicans nominated former congressman, Fox News talking head, Lehman Brothers associate, and generally rude human being John Kasich. The republican candidate's work history for failed banking firm Lehman Brothers should have been enough to sink his campaign. Unfortunately since it was not a Presidential election year, the skilled Democratic party operatives were no where to be found in Ohio. The big money Democratic party donors sat out of the 2010 Governor’s race. Ted Strickland himself seemed to be giving up, even when the polls in late October were showing the democrat having the electoral advantage. Due to the total Democratic party giving up, a man who unapologetically defended his work with one of the banking firms responsible for the 2008 economic collapse won a very narrow election against the Governor Ted Strickland. National Democratic Party malaise gave the country John Kasich.

2012 saw the Democratic party, and its donors, back in Ohio in full force. President Obama won the state, and nearly every other democrat lost. 2014 saw the absolute disaster of the Ed Fitzgerald campaign, and former Lehman Brother associate John Kasich easily won reelection. A few higher ups in the state Democratic party left in disgrace, a new group of insiders took over, and the regional leaders of the party stayed the same. Their failures were not punished. 2016 was coming, and Ohio had many of the same faces who should be focused on the local elections being used to only enlarge the Presidential candidate. Former Governor Ted Strickland was primarily being used to help the Clinton campaign, and secondarily he was trying to win a Senate race. That is the playbook for the Ohio Democratic Party.

Since the Senate was a second concern for Ted Strickland, his full attention was never on his own race. PG Sittenfeld tried to run a race for the US Senate, but the national Democrats wanted a candidate who would defer to the top of the ticket. While Rob Portman and his allies were painting Ted Strickland as a failed politician, Ohio Democrats turned all of their attention to the Presidential campaign. The Strickland campaign was not even trying to show how their candidate compared to the Republican incumbent. Even Senior Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, has not been seen assisting the Strickland campaign. Like in 2014, Democrats in Ohio have been failed by their own party in trying to be competitive in any local race.

The Strickland campaign could have easily put Senator Rob Portman on the defense and made the election about the incumbent Senator's support for some very bad ideas. While in the US House of Representatives, Portman voted for NAFTA and was a yes in the decision to impeach President Bill Clinton. He was briefly the United States Trade Representative under President George W. Bush. During Portman's time as the trade representative, the US trade deficit with China increased by over 20%. Also under President Bush, Rob Portman served as Director of the Office of Management and Budget. This appointment positioned Portman as one of the key architects of the US economy. Shortly after Portman left this position, the United States economy collapsed. As a current US Senator, Rob Portman signed onto the UnConstitutional, disrespectful, and pointless Tom Cotton letter to Iran. With a record spanning over two decades in Washington DC, there are many problematic decisions Rob Portman has made. There are many ads the Ted Strickland for Senate campaign could make to show Portman is unworthy of reelection.

Yet there were no ads connecting Rob Portman to the failed Bush economy. There has been talk of the waste, and pettiness, of the Senator signing the Cottan letter that disrespects the US Constitution. Democratic leaders, like Senator Sherrod Brown, have not been travelling the state and tell the people of Ohio how Senator Portman has put party ideology above his constituents interest. The Ohio Democratic Party has been cowering to the national party, and Ted Strickland capitulated to Rob Portman by the time summer ended.   

The Ohio Problem is not going away while we have the same failed local leaders, and the same disinterested candidates, populating the Democratic Party. The professional political operatives in the Buckeye state have once again focused all of their energy on the Presidential campaign, and voters have once again been left with no support to have people in Congress that represent their ideals. Ted Strickland may have official thrown in the towel in September, but he never had the will to put up a credible fight. Ohio will once again be talked about as being a crucial swing state for Presidential race, but when it comes to local politics it is as red as any other Republican stronghold. Thanks to inept leadership, Ohio Democrats continue to let the Ohio Problem grow. The voters deserve leaders who care.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Do you have a thought about the Ohio Problem. Tell us all about it. 

SeedSing is funded by a group of generous donors. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Kevin Garnett Showed Us all that Anything is Possible

Another legend hangs them up

Last week one of my all time favorite NBA players decided to retire. In fact, he is probably my second favorite player all time behind only Charles Barkley. That player is Kevin Garnett. I am such a big KG fan, I knew this day was coming sooner rather than later, but I was still in shock when I saw that the Timberwolves were buying him out, and he was going to retire. He has been a staple in my NBA watching life for as long as I can remember. I have vivid memories of hearing about KG when he was in high school. He is only 6 years older than I am, so it was neat to see someone that was relatively my same age be so dominant at basketball, which is my favorite sport.

I remember hearing about him transferring out of his small high school in South Carolina for many different reasons. There was the whole fight situation, that I still believe he had nothing to do with, which seemed to be the main reason for his departure. I also remember hearing other reasons such as, Farragaut Academy was a basketball factory and he was next in a long line of stars that they loaded their team with. He was not a great student, and at his high school in South Carolina let him pass because he was so good at basketball. He needed to be challenged academically as well as athletically. But, no matter what we believe or not, transferring out of the smaller school to the mighty Farragaut Academy was the best thing for him.

I also followed him a lot because he had Michigan on his short list of colleges, and me being a Michigan fan, that would have been great. But, after leading Farragaut to an incredible record, and winning Gatorade Player of the Year in Illinois, he opted for the NBA draft. I think his decision was made a bit easier because he wasn't getting the scores he needed on his SAT's and ACT as well. He declared for the draft right before this whole "prep to pro" boom took off. In fact, Garnett was one of the first people to do this since Moses Malone or Shawn Kemp.

When he was taken with the fifth overall pick in the 1995 draft by the Timberwolves. I immediately became a T'Wolves fan. As I said, I loved Garnett's game, and the tenacity with which he played. You could tell just by watching him that he put his blood, sweat and tears into this game. He was a guy that was going to put in the necessary work to make himself better and better every year. He was going to mold his game to fit in the NBA. I remember people saying he was too skinny and he would get pushed around. Now, he never got huge, but he found a way to beat bigger guys with his quickness, his work ethic and his trash talking. He played a decent amount as a rookie, but it wasn't until about year 3 when he really became an all time great. His blend of speed, size, skill, quickness, the ability to go inside and outside, his rebounding and his defense, he became a force to be reckoned with.

Before the start of the 1997 season, that was when he got his huge deal. People didn't think he deserved it, but I couldn't have disagreed more. This dude had gotten better every year, and now, he was opposing teams biggest threat. To prove his doubters wrong, he worked extra hard after getting that contract, and the proof was in the pudding. He would go to multiple All Star games. He made the Timberwolves a perennial threat. He made people think that Stephon Marbury was a legit NBA point guard. He gave Flip Saunders, RIP, all he had and turned him into a much better coach. Unfortunately, the Timberwolves could not get any further than the West Finals, but that wasn't for lack of effort and skill on KG's part. He won me over during his first go round in Minnesota, and there was no other player I tried to mimic my game after. I started to rebound and focus on defense more. I developed a low post game. I even started to trash talk, something I never did.

NBA fans know of his otherworldly trash talking. He was an all time great trash talker, right up there with Gary Payton and Michael Jordan. He would cut you down any way possible so he could have any advantage. Trash talking is such an underrated part of the game, and KG is one of the best of all time.

In 2007, KG was traded to Boston. I think we all saw the tea leaves and knew that he had done all he could in Minnesota. They couldn't go any further. So, with his growing frustration, Minnesota traded him to Boston and he paired up with Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, to form the first "big three". This worked out great for all three of those guys. They won a title in their first season together. Garnett was the star of this "big three", but he never acted bigger than any of his new Boston teammates. That's another great trait of KG. He sacrificed and always did what was best for the team. While in Boston, if they needed him to score, he scored, if they needed rebounding, KG was their guy, if they needed to step up on defense, KG led the charge. He did it all. Even after that title, we all expected so much more from the first "big three", and the start of the 2008-2009 season looked like Boston would be an all time great team. But, injuries beset KG. They still made the East Finals, but they were ousted by a young Dwight Howard led Orlando Magic team. In 2010, led by KG again, Boston made it all the way to the Finals, even though they stumbled their way to a fourth seed during the regular season. They had the Lakers on the ropes, but they couldn't close it out, much to my chagrin. I'm not a Celtics fan, but I loathe the Lakers. I will say though, KG made me root for the Celtics during his 6 years there.

In 2013, on draft day, KG and Paul Pierce were traded to the Nets, as the Celtics went into full tank mode. This trade now looks horrible, but at the time it looked great for the Nets. They needed some tough veterans, and who better than KG and Pierce to be those guys. Well, this did not go as well as most predicted. the Nets made the playoffs, but KG was hurt a lot, and the Nets never made it past round 2.

After the failed Nets experiment, KG returned to his first NBA home, Minnesota. He looked older and a bit slower, but he was the perfect griseled vet for the young T'Wolves. He got to mentor 2 of the better young players in the NBA right now in Karl Anthony-Towns and Andrew Wiggins. If I were in my early 20's, and in the NBA, I would one hundred percent choose KG as my mentor. He knows the game in and out, and gave his all to basketball.

I will always be a big, big KG fan. I walk around my house yelling "ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE!" all the time. I called myself the "Big Ticket" when I played high school basketball. I developed a jumper at the free throw line because KG did. I started to play defense because KG talked about how it wins titles. He was my basketball mentor without him even knowing it, and I know that I'm not the only fan that feels this way.

This upcoming NBA season is going to be odd to not see him or Tim Duncan out there. Kobe Bryant, I could care less about you.

Thank you Kevin Garnett for 21 wonderful, All Star filled, MVP winning, title winning and perennial playoff appearances years of basketball. You are one of the greatest to ever play. I cannot wait for your Hall of Fame induction ceremony. It will be well deserved and great.

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Milllennial Man Podcast. Last year he ranked all the NBA teams, and got so very close to a true prediction. Will he do it again this year? Follow Ty on instagram and twitter to find out. 

Ty Watches Bar Rescue: Ynot Edition

"Bar Rescue" had another great episode this past Sunday. This whole season has been pretty great,  but this episode was really good and really weird.

This time around Taffer and crew traveled to a bar called "Ynot" in Everett, Washington. This bar, like all the other bars on this show, was thriving when they first opened, but now, they have fallen on hard times. The bartenders drink on the job, they give out free drinks and they don't listen to management. The kitchen staff is defiant and makes terrible, old food. The inside of the bar is falling apart and it's dirty. The kitchen walk in, instead of having an air tight door, they have a sloppily put together front door of a house door for the walk in freezer. That doesn't keep anything cold enough, so they have to throw out a lot of food.

The biggest problem though, the "Ynot" bar is located directly across the street from a 10,000 seat arena, and they still can't get any regular business. The owners, a boyfriend and girlfriend, were running this bar into the ground. Oh, and before I forget, this bar's biggest "attraction", was goldfish races. It was as stupid as it sounds.

When Taffer and crew come to do recon, they are not happy with what they see, obviously. The first thing they see is the goldfish races. This makes Taffer irate. He cannot stop saying how stupid and pointless this whole thing was, and I couldn't have agreed more with him. The patrons grew weary of the races very quick, and the other patrons that were not doing the goldfish races, they could have cared less. No one was paying attention, except for the boyfriend that was co owner. He was way too invested in these stupid goldfish races.

Then, Taffer sends in his recon spies. It was a group of about 8 people, that were going to a show at the arena in 40 minutes, so Taffer had them order multiple shots and food, so he could see how long everything took. The shots came out quick. Shots are easy to pour. But, the spies did not like the shots. They complained that the liquor did not taste good. But, the food took forever. And it wasn't like they ordered high end food, it was bar fare. They ordered pulled pork nachos, tater tots, basically, your typical bar food. The fact that this food took this long to come out is a problem.

As soon as the staff finished, the spies had to go because the show was about to start. They walked when the staff was bringing out all the food. After this, Taffer and his "experts" entered the bar and told the waitress that they would take all the food that was just ordered. The whole time all this was going on, the boyfriend owner was obsessing over the goldfish races, and the girlfriend owner was outside smoking cigarette after cigarette. They had no interest in running this bar. Anyway, Taffer and the "experts" tried all this food, and, surprise, surprise, the food was terrible. The tater tots were cold. The French dip was gross. The other food just didn't taste right, or it was way too greasy. But, the topping on the crap cake was the nachos. They were so poorly made and so cold, that Taffer picked up a huge pile of them, held it from the top, and it stood still like a concrete. It was so, so gross. Taffer even held it up to the wall and said they should use it as décor. The owners were embarrassed, as they should be.  

Taffer and crew walked through the bar, realized how gross and disgusting it was, he told the owners that if the place wasn't clean by morning, he would not rescue the bar. The staff worked all night, and I have to say, they did a great job of cleaning that bar. So, Taffer and his "experts" chose to stay. This time around, instead of forcing the owners to fire the employees stealing from the bar, the female owner straight up fired 2 employees without batting an eyelash. The other bartender quit, so they were sans bartenders. This posed a problem, but they were able to hire 3 new bartenders. Instead of doing a stress test, they did a bartender audition. I like when they do this. We get to see how good the new bartenders really are. Some were experienced, others not, but, for the most part, all 3 new bartenders tried very hard. At the end of the night Taffer asked the owners which bartenders they wanted to keep, and they kept all 3. That made me happy.

After the audition, the new crew got trained, and Taffer's staff did their whole renovation. When they reopened the bar, Taffer renamed it "Forbidden Bar and Grill". I hated this name. "Ynot" wasn't a good name, but "Forbidden" was a horrendous name change. Taffer's crew also changed the whole inside aesthetic to an Asian theme. This also made no sense. The new menu had bahn mi sandwiches, but that was about it as far as Asian inspired stuff in this bar went. It was nonsensical, hence this episode being very bizarre.

To no one's surprise, "Forbidden" was doing great at reopen, and 6 weeks later. The 2 owners came on and thanked Taffer for everything that he did, and said that the new bar was thriving, they even had regulars now. This was a good and weird episode. It is everything that I like about "Bar Rescue". Taffer yelled, people got fired, the bar was messy and the owners were a disaster. Keep doing what you are doing "Bar Rescue", because it is working.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. What does Ty watch, check it out here. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

Ty Watches the "Eric Andre Show" Season 4 Episode 7

This most recent episode of the "Eric Andre Show" started off like most of them do. He attacked the stage with his usual vigor, and crushed pretty much everything in site. He did tackle the drummer this time, and proceeded to destroy the drummer's kit. He also ran into metal shelves again, like last week. He absolutely just demolished everything in site. It was glorious. Then, they put new set pieces in, and Andre sat down at his chair, out of breath. Hannibal Buress was introduced. He walked on stage, and took his seat. When Andre approached the stage to do his monologue, I was hoping for some hilarity. He got to the microphone, but didn't say a word. He sat there, looked angry and then proceeded to lash out and attack Buress. He started to slap him and yell at him. It was all fake, obviously, but I was rolling with laughter. Buress started to fight back, and the two of them got into a slap fight. I was hoping for hilarity, and I got exactly what I wanted. I loved this "monologue".

During the slap fight, they did their famous freeze screen with the words, "we'll be right back" frozen in mid slap. They then cut to a pre taped segment. This segment showed the return of the 2 person horse. This time, the two person horse entered a subway car. In the front, we could see that it was a female, I believe it was comedian Michelle Buteau, and Andre was in the rear. When they entered the subway car, Buteau immediately began to moan. It was all very bizarre, but I found myself laughing. Then, Andre would appear from the back, and he would say some of the most foul things I have ever heard to the passengers. It was gross and shocking and funny. They did this for about 2 minutes, and I was laughing the whole time.

Back to the stage and they introduced their first guest, Raymond Cruz. Cruz, for those that don't know, played Tuco on "Breaking Bad" and "Better Call Saul". During the interview, some weird stuff happened, but Cruz just smiled and rolled with the punches. He was a very pleasant guest. At one point, Buress said he had to go, and they replaced him with a robot they called the "Hannibal 9000". Cruz didn't bat an eye. At one point Kraft Punk showed up, and Cruz talked to him. Andre's desk gave "birth" to a smaller desk, and instead of leaving the stage like most guests usually do, Cruz made jokes. I thought this was Andre's best interview, and it happened all by chance.

After the Cruz interview was done, they went to another pre taped segment called "Mail Man Eric". This segment had Andre in a fat suit and found him getting caught in mailboxes. He would scream for help, but onlookers either paid him no mind, or they yelled at him and called him names. It was funny, but also a little sad.

Once we got back to the main stage and the next guest, Amber Rose, was brought out. She was put off immediately. She thought the stage was too dirty. Andre kept asking for her phone number and address. Andre repeatedly picked his nose. He kept claiming that she had a single, and was singing words from a song that didn't exist. Rose did not care for the "Hannibal 9000". This was your typical Eric Andre interview. He gets someone that isn't famous, but thinks they are, and he makes them as uncomfortable as he possibly can. I love when he does this, and this was no exception. This was all very funny.

We then get to see the "Ranch Dude" in the final pre taped segment. This is my all time favorite Andre character. I love how weird and downright stupid this character is. He wears goofy clothes and says goofy things. He asked random people if he could air DJ in their free space. He kept asking people if they wanted a hit off his ranch bottle. He would say complete nonsense that made passerby's uncomfortable. This character is an Eric Andre staple. I get very excited when I see the "Ranch Dude" show up. In fact, in New York, they opened up a ranch dispensary. Go look it up, it is hilarious and a great take on weed dispensaries.

After this last pre taped bit, they had their musical guest, Thundercat, come out on stage. I'm a huge Thundercat fan, so I was pumped to see him on the show. This time around, Thundercat has been on a bunch, they had him do a bass off against the "Hannibal 9000". This was so funny. Thundercat would play something totally funky and awesome, and the "Hannibal 9000" would do nothing. Then, at one point, the "Hannibal 9000"'s "dad" showed up, and all he had on was a collared shirt and a tie, nothing below the waist. This man came up and hugged Thundercat during the bass off, and Thundercat was laughing, but you could tell he was uncomfortable.

This was a very good episode of the "Eric Andre Show". In fact, this whole season has been great. Come back next week for the next review.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Before every review, Ty destroys his living room. His wife is not happy. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

Jose Fernandez - A Great Baseball Talent, and a Better Human Being, Gone Too Soon

My "Eric Andre Show" and "Bar Rescue" reviews are going to have to wait until tomorrow and Thursday because I need to talk about the tragic loss of Jose Fernandez.

I could not believe it when I saw the news on Sunday. I took that day, and yesterday for that matter, to process the whole thing. I was at a loss. I could not believe what I was reading and watching on television. I just did not think it was true. How could someone so young and filled with life and potential all the sudden be gone? It just didn't make sense. Then, I was watching the beginning of the Marlins-Mets game, and that's when it all came together for me. This is when I realized that Jose Fernandez was actually gone.

First off, the tribute that the Marlins gave him was one of the most moving things that I have ever seen. It was more moving than any movie, TV show or other thing that is written to move people. This was such a wonderful, yet very painful tribute to a fallen teammate. Then, watching Dee Gordon hit that leadoff homerun and run around the bases in tears, I mean, man, I feel like tearing up myself right now.

Jose Fernandez, if you don't know his story, was a 24 year old ace pitcher for the Miami Marlins, who defected from Cuba, and it took him 4 times to make it to America. On the fourth try, he had to save his drowning mother, which he did, and they finally made it to America. He was a hero, literally, from the moment he finally made it to America. Then, he showed off his pitching prowess. This kid was a phenom. He had an incredible array of pitches, and he had an arm that allowed him to be a starting pitcher that could go 7+ innings and throw 100 pitches a game. He had an incredible home record and ERA in his young career. He was a lock down pitcher from the moment he made the major leagues. He and Giancarlo Stanton were the cornerstones for the Marlins. The team was just starting to become a bit competitive, and it was due to Stanton and Fernandez.

But, he was so much more than a baseball player. I mean, this is coming from someone that does not watch a lot of baseball, but when I had a chance to watch Fernandez pitch, I did. He was a joy to watch, not only because he was dominant, but because of the joy with which he played baseball. He played baseball like the game that it is. He was never too serious, but he was elite. He always seemed to have a smile on his face when he was on the mound. One of my favorite highlights that has been reappearing lately is when he robbed Troy Tulowitzki on a line shot back to him. Fernandez threw the pitch, Tulo ripped it right back at him, he stuck his glove up and the ball was in his glove. He acted like this was normal. He and Tulo were both amazed at this catch. They both laughed, not believing what had just happened. That showed right there that, not only did he have the respect of his teammates, but he also had the respect of his counterparts. That does not happen too often in professional sports, unless you are a star. Go watch that highlight, that is the epitome of Jose Fernandez. Great athlete, but also played with such joy and passion.

After his tragic death, more stories came out that he was just like this off the field. He was everyone's friend. He was always smiling. He brought joy to those around him at all times. He was in a great mood most of the time. He just seemed to be a great kid, both on and off the field.

Next, the tragic news on Sunday. As I said, I did not believe it at first. I thought this was a hoax. He was too young, and had too much time left in his pro career to be gone so sudden. I started to search the internet fervently to see if this was all false. I, unfortunately, found out that all the reports were true. I still did not believe it, until last night. This is a great tragedy. Don't be fooled and just think that it was another young player that lived fast and died young. By all accounts, Fernandez was a good kid that just happened to be involved in a horrific accident that took his life, and the lives of 2 others. This is such a freak thing, and no one deserves this. I am still kind of in shock. I cannot believe that I will never see him pitch again. He was such a tremendous pitcher who had such a long career ahead of him. He was going to be a surefire, multiple Cy Young award winner, and he and Stanton were going to lead the Marlins back to being contenders. This is a true sports tragedy.

Jose Fernandez brought so much joy to his teammates, fans, friends and his family. He will be greatly missed. His life is gone, and he was so young, and so full of life. I cannot believe that he is gone, I just can't wrap my mind around it. I'm at a loss. I hope wherever you are now Jose Fernandez you are at peace. You will be greatly missed. RIP

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Follow him on instagram and twitter.

Semi - Instant 2016 Presidential Debate Reaction

Let the debates begin

One debate down, I do not want to even count how many more times we have to do this.

The very first debate between Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump, and Democratic Party nominee Hillary Clinton, is mercifully over. NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt attempted to ask questions and keep control of the event. He failed terribly.  The newsman began the night be reminding the audience not to be emotional humans, Holt then reminded the candidates that there were many questions to get through. Why do we need so many questions to be unanswered? Then we were underway.

Secretary Hillary Clinton and multiple bankruptcy declaring businessman Donald Trump proceeded to trade jabs, oldies from Trump and a few new focus tested ones from Clinton, and not answer any of Holt's questions. Clinton attacked, Trump defended and babbled, and Holt begged to move on. For ninety plus minutes the nation got to witness the exact same two candidates that were packaged and sold to us earlier in the year. Nothing new happened.

Hillary Clinton looked way more polished and in control during the debate. Everything she said seemed rehersed and extremely prepared. During certain moments of the debate I could tell her team were trying to come up with phrases that could be easily hash tagged. Anyone looking for some warmth and humanity in the former Secretary of State were not going to be in luck. Clinton was well aware that Trump was going to be combative and unpredictable. Here biggest victory was to be dismissive of the Republican nominee, and to land crushing blows to his record and ego. While she may have come off as cold, Hillary Clinton definitely looked more Presidential than her opponent during the debate.

Donald Trump was the same disaster of a candidate we have witnessed for a year now. The only difference is that the stage is not filled with a cast of thousands of other Republican clowns. Now Trump has to face off against an extremely well prepared, and extremely experienced, politician in Hillary Clinton. He did not do well. Trump was unprofessional in constantly interrupting Clinton and Holt. Trump would not give up on all of his lies and divisive tactics. Trump was flustered and incoherent whenever Clinton challenged his wealth or business failures. Trump was loudly breathing into the microphone. Donald Trump as bad as he has always been, and on the Presidential debate stage next to Hillary Clinton, he looked so much worse. The Trump campaign has been one of doom and hate, and Donald Trump embraced those ideals once again on the debate stage. He was played by Clinton, and his lack of ideas was clear to the audience who tuned in.

There we have it. One cold and calculating politician who spouts off hashtag campaigns, and one rambling lunatic who is clearly a danger to the country. Both candidates have to make some improvement before the next debate to convince the majority of voters. Hillary Clinton needs to be a bit warmer and present a positive agenda for America's future. Donald Trump needs to attend anger management classes and maybe sit down with the best psychaitrist the world has ever known. The candidates have a few weeks to get it together. Can not wait to see what happens.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor at SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. 

Beck Exceeds Already High Expectations in His St. Louis Live Show

The only thing missing is two turntables

This past Friday I had the pleasure of seeing Beck live at the Peabody Opera House in Saint Louis. Beck was on my personal "bucket list", or a "white whale" of sorts for me. He was a musician that I wanted to see before he quit doing live shows. So, when I found out he was coming to my hometown, I was going to find a way to go. My wife got myself and my brother tickets as an early birthday present. I was very enthused when she told me.

So the show came, and it was great. The opener wasn't so good, they were called CRX, and that is Julian Casablancas, of Strokes fame, new band. They sounded like a heavier, wannabe version of the Strokes. They only played for 30 minutes, which was the best thing about their set, the fact it was over so quick.

Then, after about a 20 minute break, to set up everything, Beck and his band took the stage. Beck came out on fire. He seemed pumped to be doing a show. He was very energetic from the get go. I think it helped that it was a Friday night. There is something about the beginning of the weekend that gives everyone a little extra pep in their step. And Beck was no exception. He opened the show with "Devil's Haircut". A classic right out of the gate. I loved it. The band was great all night, and it started with the shows opener. After that, Beck proceeded to play 20 songs that ran through almost his entire catalog. After "Devil's Haircut", we got some great gems like, "Black Tambourine", "Loser", "New Pollution" and "Que Ondo Guero". Each song sounded great. "Black Tambourine" was just as bouncy and poppy as I hoped it would be. He turned "Loser" into a funkier song than it ever seemed possible. "New Pollution" was straight up. It sounded like it was the original recording in the studio. He started "Que Ondo Guero" by stating that, when he was a young kid this is what the Spanish people would say to him all the time, and then Beck and the band played the song incredibly. So far, so great.

After these first 5 classics, he added other such great tunes like "Think I'm in Love/I Feel Love", "Soul of a Man", "Mixed Bizzness" and "Go it Alone". "Think I'm in Love" was awesome, and the fact that he added a little cover of Donna Summer's "I Feel Love" at the end made the song that much better. That's the great thing about live shows, the unpredictability of what covers the band might do. This was a great choice. "Soul of a Man", which is probably my personal favorite Beck song, was great. It had that great distorted guitar, and Beck and his lead guitarist traded 2 awesome solos. It was a thing of beauty. We then got some funk with "Mixed Bizzness". "Soul of a Man" may be my favorite song, but "Midnite Vultures" is my favorite Beck album, and "Mixed Bizzness" is a classic. The band sounded great, and it was a great, funky change of pace.

To follow that up with the somber, yet upbeat "Go It Alone" surprisingly worked to perfection. This was a great way to go into the next portion of his show, which I call the "acoustic/moody" portion of the show. He played "Paper Tiger", "Lost Cause", "Heart is a Drum", "Wave" and "Blue Moon" all in a row. Now, I know it sounds like I may have disliked this part, but that couldn't be further from the truth. I thought it was a great time to slow down, and build up to the end of a show. "Paper Tiger" was great, and I liked that he used electric guitars for the live show, as opposed to the acoustic he used on the record. It sounded great. "Lost Cause" was phenomenal. Again, he used an electric guitar, but the song had the same somber mood that it always had. This is a great Beck song, and it was great to hear live.

Then he went into his "Morning Phase" portion, this being his big Grammy winning record, and played three songs in a row from the record. I got a bit nervous that he was going to play some of the weirder, slower songs,  but he only picked one of those, that single one being "Wave", which I really like. The other 2 from that record were the more upbeat in music on the record, being "Heart of a Drum" and "Blue Moon". This time he busted out the acoustic guitar, and it was the perfect choice. This slower portion was very good, and as I said, a very good change of pace and build up to the end of the show.

After the "acoustic/moody" portion, Beck played his 2 new singles, "Dreams" and "Wow". "Dreams" was a great throwback Beck song. It sounded like something that could have easily been on "Mutations". It was a bit more poppy, but it still had that folksy/acoustic feel to it. "Wow" is a hit. That song is incredible. I hope his entire new album follows the sound of "Wow". The song is uniquely Beck.

I loved everything, including the show that went on behind the band on stage. "Wow" was the absolute highlight of the night. He then finished out his set with "Girl", "Sexx Laws" and "E-Pro". "Girl" was awesome. It sounded great and Beck's vocals were awesome. We got some more funk with "Sexx Laws". We also got to see some of Beck's famous dance moves and he implored the crowd to show him some of their sexy moves. It was great. "E-Pro" was a great rocker to end his set with. The band crushed the song, and Beck had an awesome solo. It was tremendous.

The band did come out and they did one encore song, but it was an epic song, with 4 short covers in the middle. First off, the band started to play the opening riffs to "Debra", but instead of that, they went into "Where It's At", another mega hit. It sounded awesome. Then, in the middle of the song, Beck decided to introduce his whole band, and this is where the short covers came into play. He introduced his bass player first, and he played a few bars of "Good Times". It was very cool. Next up, the guitar player played and sang a bit of "China Girl". Again, it was awesome. The keyboard player was next, and he played a few lines from "Pocket Calculator" which were awesome. Then, the drummer, and for that fact, the whole band chimed in and they did some lines from "1999". It was stupendous. Who can cover Prince better than Beck? No one. They then went back into "Where It's At", and ended it with a bang.

This show was everything I hoped for, but it was so, so much more. This was one of the better live shows that I have ever seen. Thank you so much Beck for all the great music that you have made, and continue to make. I had such a great time at this show. Beck is an absolute legend. Everyone must see him live.

Ty 

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Are you playing live in St. Louis, tell us and Ty will come to your show. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

Famous Fisherman and Tattoo Wearer Kevin Durant does not want to be Questioned about Basketball

All Durant fans know he averages 5.45 pounds per catch

On the most recent episode of "Any Given Wednesday with Bill Simmons", which has gotten so much worse with each episode, Kevin Durant was on as one of his guests, along with Nas. I was kind of excited because I thought Durant would shed some light on why he chose to go to the Warriors in free agency. Everyone that reads this site knows how I feel. I was hurt, I felt like it was a cheap move to get an easy title and it seemed a little weak. After a week or so of introspection, I started to think of other reasons why he might have left OKC. Maybe he wanted a change of scenery, may be he was tired of playing with Russ, maybe he thought OKC had gone as far as they could, or maybe he wanted to play in the most free flowing offense I have ever seen. I was still upset, being a former OKC fan, but I started to think outside of me being upset, and thought about why Kevin Durant, the basketball player, would want a change of scenery.

So, with his appearance on "AGW", I thought he just may give us a little bit of an explanation as to why he left. But, and this is a very recent development in Kevin Durant the person, he was quiet, and seemed angry any time the question of him leaving was brought up. Look, I understand that it is infuriating to answer the same question over and over again, I have a 4 year old, but, in this day and age of athletes being ultra famous, I'm sorry to say Mr. Durant, but that question will be asked one million more times. Get used to it. You can be gloomy and ask people to stop talking about it, but they won't.

Then, as he went into some kind of a half answer, he said that he was hurt by all the bad press. Really?! Hurt?! Of course people are going to be mad at your decision. Sports are irrational, and fans are the most irrational. We lose our minds at the smallest possible thing. My first reaction when I heard the news that Durant was leaving was to tell my family that he broke my heart. And when I say family, I don't just mean my wife and kids, we were on vacation and I told my parents and my brother, our head editor RD, and his wife and kid that Durant broke my heart. All these people did not care about the decision, but I did, because I was not only a huge OKC fan, but I am a huge Kevin Durant fan. I was as irrational as most people. I didn't burn jerseys or make videos chastising Durant, but I did say that he broke my heart. I don't know him personally. I have never met him. I've only ever seen him play live twice, but I felt like a kid who just lost his first crush to someone who was cooler than I am. So for Durant to say that he was hurt, get over it. Being a famous athlete means stuff like this is going to happen.

Then, he went on to complain that no one cares about him as a person. First off, that is not true. I'm sure the people he lets close to him care very much about him. Simmons seemed to care, and he is more plugged in than any NBA writer, with the lone exception being Zach Lowe. I'm sure his former teammates and his new teammates care about him. But, instead of pointing all that out, he seemed to be singling people out like me, the fan, as being people that don't; care about him outside of basketball.

Well, you know what, he is right. I could care less what he does with his free time because, as I have already said, I don't know him personally, I only know him as a basketball player. I do not care if he wants to go fishing on a Tuesday, one example he pointed out on the show, or how many Tupac or Rick James tattoos he has. That stuff does not interest me. To be quite callous, I only care how he performs on the basketball court. That is the one place that I can see him do his thing. I don't want to watch him fish. I don't want to go with him to the tattoo parlor and I don't want to be around when he is playing the victim, as he has done lately. Dude, you are an uber famous basketball player that makes millions upon millions of dollars. The common fan does not care about your personal life. that comes with the territory. When you get to the level that Kevin Durant is at, people only care about your game.

When LeBron left Cleveland the first time, I don't remember him complaining about being the villain, in fact, he took it on. It was unsuccessful, be he tried to be the villain. That made me like LeBron way more because he wasn't griping and complaining that no one cared about him as a person. LeBron understands that his personal stuff is of no interest to anyone outside of his inner circle. Kevin Durant needs to grow thicker skin it seems.

Look, I still love watching him play basketball, and even though I will be rooting against him now, I hope he is still as electric as he has been his whole career, but he needs to get over his personal pity party. You made your choice and you have to live with fans being upset. That comes with the job. I'm sorry that you may feel hurt, but I say, get over it. You are a great player, and stop trying to put the blame on other people, just go out there and play basketball as great as you've always been. People will boo you and cheer against you, and I hope that doesn't hurt your feelings, because it is coming in droves this season. You are a great player Kevin Durant, but right now, you are coming off as a bit whiny.

Get over it.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He will one day leave SeedSing for the greener pastures of a big time sports blog, and he will be a villain to the head editor. Get over it RD. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

The Greatest American Band Debate: Band of Gypsys

SeedSing is filled with music lovers. We can not agree on who is the best band from the States. The Greatest American Band Debate will be a regular feature where we discuss and compare bands started in the good old USA. If you have any suggestions of bands we should debate Contact us seedsing.rdk@gmail.com

During this whole greatest American band debate on the site I have been trying to find a way to put Jimi Hendrix on it some way, any way possible. I thought about doing his first band, the Jimi Hendrix Experience, but Hendrix is the only American in the band. The other 2 guys are English, and if I put them in the conversation, that opens a whole new can of worms. If I were to put them in, I'd have to look at a band like The Band. They are all Canadian, with Levon Helm being the lone exception. So, since the band is 2/3 English, I decided against putting them in.

Then, I looked at doing the same thing with Hendrix that I did with Robert Johnson. I thought that maybe I could put him in based on his tremendous and unparalleled guitar playing,  but when I thought about it more, I decided against this as well. Yes, Hendrix is an all time great musician, but he is not on Robert Johnson's level. I'm sorry, but it is true. Robert Johnson wrote some of the most iconic songs ever, songs that Hendrix himself became famous for covering, and Hendrix is just not on that Robert Johnson level. Robert Johnson is a pioneer, Hendrix just improved on Johnson's invention. While Hendrix is an all timer, he is not Robert Johnson.

But, the other day, while listening to some Hendrix music, I came across my Band of Gypsys record. Now, this was a one off, live record, but it cannot be understated how great this band truly was. This was a time when 3 wonderful musicians came together and put on excellent shows, and released one of the best live albums of all time. This my friends, is how I will finally get Jimi Hendrix in the conversation. Today, I nominate the Band of Gypsys as one of America's greatest rock bands.

Band of Gypsys consisted of three guys, Hendrix on lead guitar and vocals, the incomparable Buddy Miles on drums and vocals and Billy Cox on bass and vocals. These three coming together was a stroke of genius, or "lightening in a bottle", if you will. The three of them are some of the best to play their instruments. We all know how truly exceptional of a guitar player Hendrix was. He is one of, if not the, greatest guitar players ever. He was a genius, he was ahead of his time, and he did things that no one else could ever do on guitar. Billy Cox was a phenomenal bass player, but also a pretty decent singer. His bass on this one record is so, so good. When the band plays their first song, the first thing you hear is one of his bass lines, and it totally gets you in the mood for some great psycadelic rock and roll music. He also does some great backing vocals and lead vocals on the record. Then, we have Buddy Miles. I mean come on, is their a more underrated drummer ever than Buddy Miles? He is to drums what Booker T is to keys. They are both probably the best ever, that no one talks about. Buddy Miles was a tremendous drummer. The give and take that he and Hendrix have on "Machine Gun" is made extra great by Buddy Miles drumming. Miles was also a very, very good singer. His singing on this particular record is the best of all three members. When he sings "Changes", it is one of the best mixes of R&B and rock that I have ever heard. He had a great voice. When the three of them teamed up, they created something so special, it gave me an opportunity to finally put Hendrix in this particular conversation.

Band of Gypsys did a 2 night run, consisting of four shows, that ran from December 31st 1969 to January 1st 1970 at the Fillmore in New York. These four shows produced 6 of the greatest live songs that have ever been put on an album. The record opens with "Who Knows", which has that Billy Cox bass line that I mentioned earlier. Then, Hendrix comes in with his iconic guitar and Miles hammers home the drums. The song is epic, Hendrix does some of his better vocal work and the band sounds incredibly tight. The record then follows that song with my favorite Hendrix song ever, "Machine Gun". I have already talked about the back and forth between Hendrix and Miles, but that song is so much more. The lyrics have a great message. The instrumentation is wonderful. The fact that Hendrix gets his guitar to sound like a machine gun is exceptional. Same goes for Buddy Miles on drums. The solo that Hendrix does on this recording is one of the best solos ever. I love, love, love this song. "Machine Gun" is a must listen. Then we get "Changes". Buddy Miles vocals on this track are great. He belts this song and Hendrix and Cox do some great work on a more upbeat, faster paced song. Hendrix again has a great solo. "Power of Love" has some great back and forth vocals from both Miles and Hendrix, and it is a pretty great psychedelic rock song. Again, Hendrix slays guitar, and I love Buddy miles vocals and drums. Billy Cox's bass is great as well. Another love song follows with, "Message of Love". This song is all Hendrix all the time, and it is great because of that. They close out the record with "We Gotta Live Together". This song showcases all three of them at their absolute best. It is a very great way to close out this very iconic record.

I know the album only has 6 songs, and it may seem like an unfair way, or that I'm shoehorning Hendrix in, but I seriously believe, even though they only did 4 shows and put out one live record, that Band of Gypsys is definitely one of America's greatest rock bands. I mean, Buddy Miles and Hendrix played a lot before they did this four show run. Billy Cox also showed up here and there on earlier Hendrix jam sessions and recordings. The three of them knew each other pretty well, and they used that friendship totally to their benefit when they decided to do these shows together. I love Band of Gypsys, but more importantly, I love Jimi Hendrix. He belongs in this conversation, and if I have to find a backwards way to put him in, I'm glad that Band of Gypsys put out this one record, making them more than eligible.

So yes, I firmly believe that Band of Gypsys is one of America's greatest bands for all the reasons I listed above. They also belong because these three guys are some of the all time greats at their respective instruments. If you like Hendrix, go check out Band of Gypsys, I bet you will love them.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. If you think Ty is cheating, nominate your own Greatest American Band, write for us. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

Paul Finebaum fits Right in with Sports Talk Idiots

Finebaum's bulb is not half this bright

One year ago on this date and on this website, I wrote about how terrible football announcer Chris Collinsworth really is. Today, to kind of try and keep a tradition, I'm going to write about another nitwit that acts like he is way too big for his britches, and thinks he knows more about college football than anyone else. The person I'm going to crush today is ESPN's own, Paul Finebaum.

I have really, really disliked this guy since the moment I saw him on the SEC channel on ESPN. He became widely known when he let an, I don't know if it was Alabama or Auburn fan, but some crazed fan go off on his radio show. The whole thing was bizarre, but it let the world know who Paul Finebaum, the person, is. He is your typical, I'm going to say something so stupid and ridiculous, that it will make people talk about me type of person. Hell, I'm talking about today and I loathe him.

But lately, he is turning into the new version of Skip Bayless, and that is by no means a complement. I guess ESPN needs a blowhard, no matter how many leave, or they "fire", They had Colin Cowherd, Skip Bayless and Stephen A Smith, and now, they have Paul Finebaum. The one thing these guys have in common, they are blowhard racists. I guess they do have another thing in common, they are so blinded by their homerism, they can't see good in any other team or conference.

Finebaum, as I have already stated, works for ESPN's SEC channel, so he is completely in the bag for the SEC. But, he does not like the whole SEC, but he LOVES Alabama. They can do no wrong in Finebaum's opinion. Yes, they are dominant, but as a sports journalists, I don't know how many times I have said this on this site, but I'm going to say it again, you cannot be biased when you are a journalist that appears on TV. This is what makes Kirk Herbstreit great. He can call any game, and you would never know that he played at the University of Ohio State(I know that's wrong, but when a star player calls his college that, that is what I'm going to call it from now on). But Finebaum, a guy that have never played a down of football it seems, acts like he is on the staff at Alabama. He will not say one bad thing about them, but he will crush other college teams. He is a big basher of Michigan football. I don't know why he has this vendetta, but he has chastised the fans, calls Jim Harbaugh an idiot, amongst other things and blasts them for being overrated. But, bring up another SEC school, Tennessee for example, he will say that they are turning it around, and that Butch Jones is a good guy.

What a crock.

Yeah, Harbaugh is loud and boisterous and finds loopholes that other SEC coaches can't find, but he is nowhere near as bad a person as Butch Jones, and he is not an all time curmudgeon like Nick Saban. but, bring up Harbaugh, or any other Big Ten coach, with the exception being Urban Meyer, and Finebaum feels that it is his place to put them in line.

First off, who in the hell cares what Paul finebaum has to say. He is a very, very poor man's version of John Clayton. At least Clayton worked in the NFL, and is very knowledgeable. Finebaum, he is, at best, a fan boy. When Cam Robinson, who I have written about twice on this site, got arrested for stealing guns, he sided with the people at Alabama, saying that it was a mistake and we can't let this ruin his college career. I bet if Robinson played for Michigan, Wisconsin, Michigan State or Northwestern, he'd be at his pulpit saying this kid needs to be kicked out of college football and school. But, since he is at Alabama, he gives this kid a pass.

Second, Finebaum is terrible on TV. Whenever he is on "College Football Live", or any iteration of some college football talk show on ESPN, I change the channel. He has no idea what he is talking about, and it all sounds like gibberish. He goes on and on about nonsensical topics, and I think he talks just because he likes to hear his own voice. I also think that he truly believes that if Nick Saban is watching, he may contact Finebaum and tell him how great he is, like a child waits for an autograph.

The fact that he came out recently and said that the Big Ten conference is the best in college football right now is a crock. He does not like any school in the Big Ten, except for the University of Ohio State, and that is just because their coach is a former SEC coach. If anyone else coached that school, he would never talk about the Big Ten.

There is also a reason that Finebaum never calls any college games, because he can't. He is incapable of calling a game properly. I truly believes he has no idea how the game of football actually works. He may know about recruiting and stuff in the South, but I truly believe that he does not know the rules of the game. I have never seen him call a game ever, on any network. This should speak volumes to people.

Paul Finebaum represents all the problems that a network like ESPN has right now. He is a blowhard, he is stupid, he is a fan boy, he only cares about hot takes and he doesn't really know anything about the sport that he is supposed to be an "expert" on. I would rather listen to guys like Todd McShay and Tom Luginbill call games, and I HATE those guys. At least they played and know the game of football. Paul Finebaum is a joke and an embarrassment to the people at ESPN, which is an embarrassment itself. This dude is inept, and until he is off the air, we, the college football fanatics, will have to deal with his nonsense. Screw you Paul Finebaum. You are TERRIBLE.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He has a long going beef with ESPN. Maybe if he added some squash. Follow Ty on instagram, twitter.

Is Soylent the Food For People? Fifteen Days Later

As of today, I have been using Soylent as a big part of my diet for 15 days. That is half of the month that I had originally planned to test this diet with. You can read my first two accounts here and here. In the second week and a day of having a least half of my calories come from Soylent here are some of my observations:

Not only have I noticed that I have more energy when I wake up in the morning, but I have less desire for coffee lately as well. I have always had to force myself to stop drinking coffee when I notice it gets to unhealthy levels. The past few days I have been forcing myself to make some coffee when I can sense the oncoming headache from caffeine withdrawal. I like to drink some coffee when I want to drink some coffee, but I could use less dependence on coffee. Therefore I consider this a welcome change.

I have really been noticing a strong urge to want to eat solid food when I'm planning on having Soylent. Particularly when I am around family that is eating or snacking. At first I was only noticing it when I wanted to eat junk food, but I have also started noticing it with something like carrots. I snacked on a lot of junk, but also on a lot of carrots. Still, these cravings are never really hunger. It is part desire for the taste and part unhealthy eating habits that I have learned over the years. While experiencing this does cause me a small amount of suffering, I can usually move my mind on to something else pretty easily.

On the other hand, when I do eat, the food has a richer flavor. I really enjoy it more than I had before. I can taste and actually take time to notice the individual ingredients and their subtle flavors in my food. By the time I eat a meal for the day, I am really looking forward to it. So I am going to make sure I take the time to enjoy it. I still eat way faster than I need to, but I also spend much more time appreciating the deliciousness of what I am eating.

I have noticed a change in my digestive system. Not that I think it was a huge issue (although you would have to ask my family for their opinion) I have had less gas issues coming from either end. I have read some reports that defecation levels of some Soylent users are reduced. If that is true of me, the change has been minimal.

Overall, I feel much better than I have in awhile. I feel more mentally focused. Physically, I feel less dragging from poor nutrition. I have certainly lost weight, but again I think this has more to do with tracking my calories than with using Soylent. I have lost a lot of weight by tracking calories before. The difference this time is that I am getting much more balanced nutrition. So instead of getting an “oh shit I am about to black out” feeling when I stand up after sitting for awhile, I simply stand up and feel the same as when I was sitting.

So there you have it. If you ever wanted to know what it would be like to have Soylent as a major part of your diet for half of a month, these are my impressions. I plan to update with any further observations in another week or so and a final conclusion at the 30 day mark where I will look back and weigh out whether I feel this experience has been beneficial enough to continue. Thanks for reading and feel free to ask any questions in the comments.

Kirk Aug

Kirk sometimes wishes that Soylent followed it's pop culture roots and was made in chip form. Follow Kirk on instagram @kirkaug and twitter @kirkaug.

Ty Watches "Bar Rescue": Celebrities Edition

This past Sunday, after a 2 week break, "Bar Rescue" was back. This episode featured a bar called "Celebrities" that was about 30 miles outside of Palm Springs, Florida. The bar was being run by 2 brothers that were former Army men. They were deployed in Afghanistan, which is where they were from, but they were raised in America, and when they got home, they wanted to run a bar. The main reason they were sent home, one of the brothers had a bomb go off very close to his face. He has a lot of PTSD from this incident, and he has many, many problems with his eyes, as one would expect. The other brother never really got over what he saw, and asked to leave the Army, which they obliged, so he could go home with his brother. I felt bad for these guys off the bat.

We come to find out that when they first opened "Celebrities", they were raking in the dough. They were making 6 figures every month, breaking even after only 2 months in the business. After making a good amount of money for almost a year, the brothers decided that they were going to give back to the community, and mainly, the veterans. They gave a good amount of money to charity. In fact, one of the brothers filmed himself picking up what seemed to be a homeless veteran, and giving him a good amount of money. After he filmed all this, he put it on social media.

Well, some people did some deep internet diving, and they found out that the homeless man was actually a scam artist. After people realized this, you'd think the brother that gave the money to this guy would apologize, but he did the exact opposite. He attacked people that attacked him on social media. When people came to the bar to confront him, he would yell and scream at these people and eventually would kick them out of the bar. He had become very angry at his mistake, but instead of owning up to it and swallowing his pride, he decided to take the offensive. Seeing his outbursts in person, and on social media, this made people stop coming to the bar. They didn't want to deal with a confrontational owner and a guy that wouldn't take heed of his own mistakes. They immediately started to lose lots and lots of money. They even tried to sell the space because they could not make ends meet.

By the time Taffer and crew showed up, they were 750,000 dollars in debt. When Taffer and crew got there, they had it set up so people that have confronted the main owner on social media would be the patrons of the bar that night. This escalated very quickly. Many complaints started right away. People were waiting 30 or 40 minutes for drinks. A lot of people would leave after 20 minutes of waiting. The food that patrons were ordering would arrive at their table cold and 40 minutes late. Bartenders were even giving away drinks without making people pay. It was a total mess. But, instead of trying to make things right, the owner argued with customers, and kicked the majority of them out. He is a hot head for sure.

Taffer came in and laid into this guy. But, the owner did not take his berating sitting down. He fought back and told Taffer that he did not like being treated like a child. After cooler heads prevailed, Taffer sat down with the staff and they got to the root of the problem. We come to find out that the bartenders have no real training. The kitchen staff is good, but they get no help from the owner on anything, in fact, he spends most of his time yelling at them. We finally realize that the brother who is the main owner has taken a lot of money from his brother to keep the bar running, and he feels that he has failed him. The owner is also very skeptical about giving more money to the community because he thinks that people will come at him even harder on social media, and he doesn't want to take it anymore. For the most part, this was a pretty laid back episode. There was the yelling and screaming, but everyone involved knew they needed to change if they wanted to become successful again.

After the whole heart to heart with the staff and owners, Taffer and crew got to work. They painted the whole bar with brighter and nicer colors. The staff got proper training from a renowned mixologist, a word I loathe. The kitchen staff got a new menu, which they knocked out of the park. And the owner, he started to act like a real person, instead of an asshole. He knew he needed to change his attitude, so he could help pay his brother back, and get back in good terms with the community and the social media people.

Once Taffer and crew did their thing, they revealed the new bar. They changed the name from "Celebrities" to "The Victory". I think that is a dumb name, but what do I know. The inside looked much more inviting, and everyone loved what they were seeing. He set them up with new POS systems, flat screen TV's, better liquor, all your basic "Bar Rescue" stuff. During the re opening, the bar seemed to be doing much better, and the owner seemed very grateful to Taffer.

This was your classic, right down the middle episode of "Bar Rescue". It is nice to have it back on air, that 2 week break seemed much longer, and I'll be here to review every episode until this season ends. Come back next week for more.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is not one to lash out on social media at anyone. Want proof? Go follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Ty Watches the "Eric Andre Show" Season 4 Episode 6

This past Friday's "Eric Andre Show" was one of the weirder ones I have ever seen, and that is saying something, because his show is weird and wonderful. He did his thing during introduction, but as he went to tackle his drummer, he stopped short, and then proceeded to shake all the band members hands and give them praise. He then proceeded to destroy shelves on an aluminum built rack. He actually ran through the middle of two of them. While destroying the stage, pro skater Tony Hawk showed up and did some tricks, and also helped Andre wreck the stage. The two of them were doing damage. A guy dressed like a mummy came on the stage and went on to choke Andre with some of his wrapping. After that, Tony Hawk started to beat up Andre. Andre exclaimed, "why are you doing this? I thought we were friends", but Hawk just kept pummeling him. After all this, Andre threw a vase, and the destruction was over. Then, Hannibal Buress shot out from the top of the ceiling right into his chair. After all that, Andre got on stage and did his monologue. It was all nonsense and bizarre and funny. It even included a "Looper" reference, that was hilarious. I have really enjoyed the addition of the monologues this season.

After the monologue, the first guest, Warren G, came on stage. Warren G looked confused from the start. First off, Andre proclaimed that he was a rapper, and started to freestyle. It was terrible, on purpose, and Warren G was not impressed. Andre made Buress freestyle, and his rapping was worse than Andre's, and louder. Warren G was dumbfounded. Then, my new favorite character, Kraft Punk showed up. He came out on fire, throwing cheese slices at Andre and Buress. We then cut to his new pre taped segment, "The Kraftolor". It was like "The Bachelor", but Kraft Punk would show up in a random café, tell people that he could not die, then ask ladies if they would be his "cheese wife". I LOVED this. It was hilarious. Kraft Punk was ushered off stage, as usual, and then Andre asked Warren G if he would do adult stuff with Martha Stewart. Warren G paused, and then said yeah, with a huge smile on his face. The show then cut to a picture of Martha Stewart.

We then got another pre taped segment, where it starts out like an "And 1" mixtape video, but then it turns out that Andre is playing a dad whose son is flying away on a balloon. The guys playing basketball did not care for all this nonsense. They wanted him off the court, and they kept asking how little his baby was, if 4 helium balloons could carry it away. During this segment, the camera kept cutting back to Andre, and he was asking ridiculously ludicrous questions to himself, but the show made it seem deep. It was weird and funny. There was also an early pre taped segment, that took place in a café of some sort, and some wacky hijinks went on. It was bizarre, but in a good way.

After Warren G leaves the set, the next guest that comes on is Kelly Osbourne. She is immediately turned off by everything that Andre is doing. He asked ridiculous questions, he has a PA fly into his desk, thus crushing it, he speaks in an English accent, but he just says lines from the movie "Austin Powers" and he tells her that he heard that her dad was famous for eating animal feces. She is so angry at him, and at one point she says a very bad thing, and Andre runs with it. He puts up pictures with her face and the quote, and Kelly Osbourne is made very upset by all this. I thought it was hilarious. I won't type the quote, but go look it up online, or watch the episode, it makes her look really bad.

The show cuts to another pre taped segment, where Andre bursts out of a dryer at a laundry mat, covered in goo, and keeps asking people what year is it. The patrons are not amused. I was cracking up. He keeps pushing and pushing until one guy physically pushes him out of the laundry mat. The segment then turns into a "TV" show that Andre is making called "Alien Dad". He goes back into the laundry mat to tell people he just wants to find his kid, but they are not buying it. Once again, he gets shoved out a second time.

After all this, instead of having a musical guest on, they have comedian Jim Norton come on to do some jokes. But, the rub with this bit, Norton is hooked to an electrical shock machine, and any loud noise causes him to get shocked. He is doing fine at first, but then Andre sends out some angry, barking German Shepard's, and a lot of other noise causing things. Norton looks like he is in a world of pain by the end of the bit.

This was one of the more unusual episodes, as I said at the top, but I still was laughing throughout. Warren G is one of the first people that I haven't seen walk off during the first interview also. He was a good sport. There are only a few episodes left in this season, but I will be here to review the rest for you when they are on. Come back next week for the next one.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Ty needs new shows to watch, give us some suggestions. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.

Human Joke Jimmy Fallon Plays with Human Trash Donald Trump

Jimmy Fallon did this to my tv

So today, I'm going to keep it short and angry.

I awoke this morning to the horror that was the "Jimmy Fallon Show" interview of the garbage monster Donald Trump. Right off the bat it needs to be known that I am not a Jimmy Fallon fan. I did not like him on "SNL". He broke too much. He couldn't get through a scene without laughing. I also did not like any of his characters or his impressions. He was, and always will be, a hack. I also do not think he is a leading man type actor. Hell, he'd be lucky to be a character actor, let alone a leading man. He proved how terrible of an actor he is in such movies like "Taxi" and "Fever Pitch". I know that people say that his talk show is different and better, but I don't buy it. He is too nice to everyone, and he wants to be everyone's friend. The good thing about guys like David Letterman, Stephen Colbert, Conan O'Brien, and even to a lesser extent, Jay Leno, when they had a controversial figure on, they asked tough questions, or they just flat out wouldn't have someone on that they did not like or agree with. Look at Seth Myers, he said he will not put that piece of trash Trump on his show. Where Meyers has integrity, Fallon lacks any sense of any kind of integrity.

The Trump interview last night was an absolute joke and a complete ratings grab. Fallon is clearly losing the late night audience to guys like Conan and James Corden, so what does he do, he invites that racist asshole Trump to be on his show, and it was a total puff piece. You need look no further than all the media outlets showing photos of Fallon tosselling that monster's "hair". What a piece of trash the two of them are. You'd think a young guy like Fallon would have more sense, but clearly, he doesn't.

Who is he trying to get to watch his show by having that stupid idiot Trump as a guest? If he is looking for the 18-49 viewing audience, the goal of all shows, he is shit out of luck. I know zero 18-30 year olds that support that stupid son of a bitch. There are a few 30-40 year old moronic racist assholes that support that piece of trash, but I guarantee that they are not watching Fallon because they are too busy being brain washed by Fox News. The only group in the coveted TV watching group that may have had more dumbass Trump supporters are the 41-49 year olds, but those people clearly have no souls and they only care about rich people that will make them richer. And that is exactly what this interview was, 2 rich guys laughing and having a good time like a couple of dickheads. I cannot believe that something like this was allowed to happen.

This, in my opinion, is so much worse than when that punk ass Trump hosted "SNL". "SNL" has been very, very bad for the past 5 or 6 years, so the fact that they let that douchebag host, who cares, no one was watching. But, to have that ass face on a late night talk show as a guest, what a crock. And then, to make it a puff piece, that is a straight up shame. If you are going to put a real life super villain on your late night talk show, at least give him some tough questions. Don't laugh and joke with him and play with his hair.

I'm also very curious to know how the Roots, Fallon's house band, felt about this. They are one of the most politically conscious hip hop groups of all time, and they had to sit there and watch this nonsense. I mean, Questlove and Black Thought had to be losing their minds. If it was me, I would have refused to step on the same stage as that piece of trash. That was a low, cheap and dirty move by Fallon, and his staff, to schedule that sorry excuse of a human being on their show, and then to have a laugh with him while his house band has to sit there and watch this all unfold, that's embarrassing.

I guess what I really want to say, first, screw you Jimmy Fallon, but also, this showed me everything I needed to know about your true character. You are clearly a money and ratings grubbing asshole that is afraid to ask any tough questions because you want to be the late night host that is everybody's friend. This was disgusting and a slap in the face to the people that watch your show regularly. Anyone that allows that racist, arrogant, selfish, bullish piece of shit to speak on a late night talk show deserves the ill fate that is assuredly coming their way. I hope Jimmy Fallon reads everything that is being written about him today, and I hope it makes him literally sick. That is what you deserve you punk. I did not like him before last night, and I hate him even more now after last night's atrocity. Screw you and I hope Trump knows how much of a loathesome figure he truly is, no matter how much he lets Fallon play with his stupid hair.

This was an absolute travesty.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is not a fan of Donald Trump. Follow Ty on twitter @tykulik.