The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edition

Keep a diary of what you're hitting, what's frustrating you, and your goals.
Post Reply
User avatar
F[uns]tylin' Eclectic
Post Master General
Posts: 4092
Joined: 05 Feb 2010 19:53
Location: Drumore, PA

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by F[uns]tylin' Eclectic » 29 Jan 2015 22:01

Unbelievable stuff, dude. I had to comment on the Fusion> Food bs and the Alpine Pixie stuff. Can't wait to see which window you'll be looking out of at your next level.
Nick Polini

Footbag is good for the SOLE

Funblog

"Yeah dude it's all mental. Then it's physical" ~Evan Gatesman

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 03 Feb 2015 21:11

Thanks man.

Had a great session with Dan tonight. We closed out the gym, which I used to do a lot when I was in school. Yay nostalgia! Not a lot of real highlights, but everything in general felt really good. My runs are feeling super controlled and much longer than normal, and I think I'm breathing more without thinking about it.

"Highlights":

Rev. Swirl bs with a piece of fucking gum.
Matt Kemmer

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 28 Feb 2015 18:02

Hey, modified. I haven't played much the past month, maybe 3 times, because things have been busy with the musical we're doing. However, Kevin and I did have our second "Meet in Springfield AKA the place where you can't eat between 2 and 5" session. We played for about 3 hours, and while it wasn't great shred from either of us it was a lot of fun and what I needed. After we finished, we had an experience in the shower, and then downed some Five Guys before getting back on the road.


Pdx Eggbeater>Pixie Whirl rpt
Scorpion's Tail>Tombstone bs
Blur>Assassin>Legbeater>Blur>Phoenix bs
Mullet>Tombstone
Matt Kemmer

User avatar
DC Clinks
BSOS Beast
Posts: 337
Joined: 01 Jun 2014 19:26
Location: NY

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by DC Clinks » 28 Feb 2015 18:30

>we had an experience in the shower

Go on...
-Daniel C. NY, USA. "Sacrifice a goat to our Lord and Savior Evan Gatesman".

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 06 Mar 2015 19:16

Had a great 3 hour session with Dan today, which was just what I needed this week. I luckily didn't lose anything in my little February break (but didn't gain anything either):

Blur>Assassin>Legbeater>Blur>Phoenix bs again (no reason to not rpt it next session)
Vortex>Blurry Drifter>Tombstone bs (for the first time in years!)
Stepping Mirage>Phoenix>Blurry Whirl rpt bs

Ended with some basic stepping ducking stuff, which still feels nice. Back to business!

edit: forgot the dumbest thing I've ever done with a footbag; DLO bs fancy style
Matt Kemmer

User avatar
DC Clinks
BSOS Beast
Posts: 337
Joined: 01 Jun 2014 19:26
Location: NY

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by DC Clinks » 08 Mar 2015 09:43

"I've worked for Mr. Krabs for many years, and always thought he was a great boss. I now realize that he's a great big jerk! I deserved that manager job, but you didn't give it to me because you said I'm a kid!"
-Daniel C. NY, USA. "Sacrifice a goat to our Lord and Savior Evan Gatesman".

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 08 Mar 2015 18:11

Thanks.

Had a 2.5 hour solo session. Pretty much everything felt really good, and I had some of the best step ducks I've ever hit.

Fog>Phoenix>Tombstone bs
Blurry Whirl>Spikehammer bs
Blur>Assassin>Legbeater>Blur>Phoenix bs again, again (the reason to not hit the drill was lack of food!)
Matt Kemmer

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 10 Mar 2015 21:21

2 hour solo session. Nothing crazy, just drilling Pixie Ducking and Stepping Ducking

Skullsmasher for the first time in a while
9.5 contacts of Blur>Assassin>Legbeater>Blur>Phoenix rpt -_-
Matt Kemmer

h0ag3yb3atZ
Egyptian Footgod
Posts: 1161
Joined: 03 Jul 2008 09:05
Location: Shaolin
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by h0ag3yb3atZ » 11 Mar 2015 07:56

lol at the last one.

can't wait for our next session homie!
Kevin Hogan

BSC

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 21 Mar 2015 16:56

Things have been pretty busy with the musical lately. I had probably the most stressful week of my life, but we're all in the clear now. I'm super pumped to perform, and just like last year, I can't wait to take another musical challenge.

I've managed to play at least once a week this month. Dan was home today, but I did borrow my favorite bag that we always play with and had a 3 hour solo session. I set out to do X number of Pixie Ducking/Stepping Ducking tricks into strings (the number ending up being 10 on each side). I did various tricks/concepts into the sets, and I feel like I made a lot of progress. My form in general has been feeling great lately, and I keep getting to the end of my sessions with a "shit, I can't stop, this is too good" feeling.

Janiwalker>Spikehammer bs
Matt Kemmer

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 03 Apr 2015 05:42

Had my first outdoor session of the year and took advantage of it by playing for 3 hours.

I wanted to match Kevin's 100 eggbeater thingy he's doing, and I managed to do 30 of various forms, into and out of different tricks. Other than that I worked a bit on Stepping Ducking (strongside is getting pretty consistent; still have to work hard for flip, but it's improving) and got a really easy feeling Alpine Blurry Whirl.

I think the weather's going to get shitty again this weekend, but it will hopefully be nice enough soon to play outside all the time.
Matt Kemmer

User avatar
isirc10
Fearless
Posts: 572
Joined: 18 Jun 2012 09:13
Location: Penn State

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by isirc10 » 13 Apr 2015 23:45

Matt Kemmer is good at footbag.
Fuck hopovers and motions.
He leaves coats and socks at shred haus.
He makes faces at cameras.
You'll find them on shirts.
I've got a few good ones from this weekend.

Image
That is all. :D
Ivan Iakimenko

Maker of I^2 Footbags!

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 15 Apr 2015 19:05

Had a session sort of with Dan sort of solo (cause his shins were acting up). My vortexes were feeling inadequate after watching Evan do 1000 of them over the weekend so I decided to focus on them for the whole session:

Vortex>Merkon>Pixie Muted Clipper rpt bs
Vortex>Drifter rpt x2 (after I couldn't hit it at Evan's request)
Vortex>Spinning Whirl>Vortex bs
Vortex>Scorpion's Tail bs
Scorpion's Tail>Vortex bs
Infinity>Vortex>Vortex rpt bs
Infinity>Vortex>Rev. Swirl rpt x2
Vortex>Stepping Mirage>Legbeater rpt bs
Vortex>Janiwalker bs

They're feeling much better now, and I feel much more confident throwing them mid-string.
Matt Kemmer

User avatar
bluevampire101
Multidex Master
Posts: 230
Joined: 26 Jun 2013 15:53
Location: State College, PA

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by bluevampire101 » 16 Apr 2015 14:55

Hey Matt. You should discuss how the musical went.
Request #1
April Tou
kicker, stitcher, footbag enthusiast, baker of PSUFC

"Drill until it's ingrained." -old Indian proverb according to a book I read

User avatar
Sporatical_Distractions
registered sacks offender
Posts: 4510
Joined: 12 Oct 2004 19:14
Location: Guy's American Kitchen & Bar

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Sporatical_Distractions » 16 Apr 2015 21:41

Your shred is so beautiful and precise in person and on video. I'm visualizing you doing those combos and they all have perfect upright form

Edit: your session looks like it could lead into vortex>spin whirl>Scorps> drifter> rpt. That way you don't have to spin out of a double down but still have a rad drill
Welcome to Flavortown

Kevin Crowley

User avatar
Sporatical_Distractions
registered sacks offender
Posts: 4510
Joined: 12 Oct 2004 19:14
Location: Guy's American Kitchen & Bar

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Sporatical_Distractions » 17 Apr 2015 00:11

It also makes me want to challenge you to either paradon>spin legover/pickup> rpt or barfly>spin clip/butter>rpt
Welcome to Flavortown

Kevin Crowley

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 29 Apr 2015 20:18

Thanks, Kevin.

I played outside the past two days. Spring is here again. Yesterday was not so good, but today was pretty excellent. Worked Eggbeater, Fog/Haze, and Stepping Ducking. By the end of the session, I found my shuffle groove and was feeling really excellent. No real highlights, just good + consistent runs.



For something completely different, I’ve had a few requests to document my experience with musical directing Little Shop of Horrors, so here we go!

Prelude

While this particular journey started back in December, it really started last year, when I did piano and keyboard for Rent. I had some friends at my alma mater who had this idea to do a student-run production of Rent, the musical, and while most of them were accomplished musicians and singers, they didn’t really know anyone (apart from faculty members) who played piano. On the suggestion of one of my friends (thank you Brittany, you have no idea how important that spark was), they approached me about playing for the show.

Up to that point in my musical career, I had done a handful of shows comprised of rock covers and held my post in the choir as backup keyboardist for a couple years; nothing at all like playing piano for a musical. Even then, I knew that it was a challenge I wasn’t really ready to take, but seeing as they didn’t have many other options I told them I’d give it my best shot.

What followed was months and months of practicing on my own, rehearsing with the singers, and rehearsing with the band. It was by far the hardest music I’d ever played before, but I managed to be just ready enough by the time we performed the show. It wasn’t perfect by any means (god damn you “Christmas Bells” and your stupid fucking ending), but I made it through and improved a TON between December and March. I felt ecstatic after we finished our final performance, and I’d got bitten badly with the musical bug.

The summer was pretty dry in terms of performances. I knew my friend who did Rent was planning on doing Little Shop, but we didn’t have our first official meeting until the fall. We decided that I would do piano again, but this time be the official musical director. Whoa. I did some light cueing during Rent, but made no musical decisions, taught none of the music, nor conducting any of the songs. I knew, again, that this was not really a challenge I was ready for, but hey, it was a safe environment to learn in, so why not!? After the meeting I immediately called the guitarist and drummer I worked with in Rent to invite them to be part of the band (because I can make decisions like that as the musical director!). I was absolutely giddy at this point.

In the following weeks, I started learning the score on my own. While Rent is a rock musical, Little Shop is Motown-inspired, a style I had never played before. It was much more rhythmically complex than Rent (though not at all compared to the current show I’m working on), with a lot of light syncopations and ONE-and-two-AND-three-and-FOUR-and rhythms. Rhythm is/was by far my worst musical component (with my strengths being in harmony, and I guess sight-reading?), so it was a bit scary at first. I also figured out early on that there would be no bassist with the band, which meant my left hand was the bassist, which meant that I was the entire melodic rhythm section, which meant I had to play all the rhythms very well. Shit.

In addition to learning my part, I started to work on transposing the trumpet and saxophone parts; since we were doing this as under-the-rug as possible, the only part of the score we had access to (not-so-legally) was the piano conductor book, which at best had the other instruments written into the existing clefs. I was familiar with the process of transposing, but had never really done it before. The music program I use (musescore, a free Finale-like program) has auto-transposing, but I forced myself to do it by hand so I could practice and learn. The whole process (which took me well into rehearsal to finish because I wasn’t diligent enough) took 20-30 hours, was very challenging, but helped me to become intimately familiar with everyone’s parts as well as the overall character of the score.

We (me, my roommate the director, and club-representatives) cast the show before the end of the fall semester. I had never played piano for audition pieces before, so I was very cautious going in. As I took people’s music I told them “just to let you know, I am not a professional pianist, so I may not play this exactly as written and I will probably make mistakes, but do your best to just ignore me and keep going.” Despite my nerves, it went really well and I was able to play all of the pieces people auditioned with (granted they were mostly from the show itself, but I was still early-on in the learning process).

The number of people, and the number per gender, who auditioned was exactly how many we needed for the show. Scary! Notable moments from auditions: being able to give good feedback and see immediate results from the singers; being absolutely blown away by a Seymour audition (I still “holy shit” over how good he was); seeing my friend who was putting the whole show together struggle a bit with his Seymour audition and then come back to do a phenomenal Dentist audition (Matt, if you ever find this post on a footbag forum about musical theatre: You didn’t get the Dentist because you were not the best Seymour, you got the Dentist because you absolutely fucking killed it as the Dentist). By the end of the night we had our cast, and our journey as a group had begun.
Matt Kemmer

User avatar
C-Fan
Rekordy Polski
Posts: 11366
Joined: 23 Jan 2003 23:51
Location: Denver
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by C-Fan » 30 Apr 2015 08:48

Enjoyed that a lot; its always neat to hear about footbaggers' other hobbies, and seeing the similarities/differences of how they approach both hobbies.
Matt K wrote: (god damn you “Christmas Bells” and your stupid fucking ending), .
I can totally see you writing something similar about a routine or a drill, for example. Damn you juggling section of my routine!

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 02 May 2015 15:56

Thanks, Ken! I'm going to work on part two tonight so I should have it up later or tomorrow.

Played 2.5 hours with Dan tonight. Felt really really good and got a nice highlight:

Scorpion's Tail>Blurry Torque bs
Matt Kemmer

Matt K
Flower Child
Posts: 1854
Joined: 16 Feb 2006 16:27
Location: Saratoga, New York
Contact:

Re: The Fast and the Furious: Operation El Kemino, Tokyo Edi

Post by Matt K » 04 May 2015 20:21

Still working on part 2.

Played again for 2.5 hours. Worked eggbeaters, and they're really starting to feel solid and usable.

Pdx. Drifter>Pdx. Egg>Dimwalk rpt bs
Pdx. Egg Rubberman (not bs because I ran out of time -_-)
Matt Kemmer

Post Reply