I'm all in

Wade Bloggs! updates this morning for the first time in almost a year. Do not ask me how I know this. I certainly do not post there. Not as a manchild Wade Boggs.

Had my job interview yesterday, and I got a really good vibe. They're interviewing for four positions over three days. My guess is that they don't get a lot of males going for it, and although I didn't intend to talk about it, I think my 300lb-to-180lb weight-loss story showed a resilience of character that shows I work hard. I'll be hearing in a few weeks.

I got a new CD in the mail the other day, and I saved it for the drive into the city for my job interview: Mike Errico's All In. Errico is a songwriter from New York who mixes the best of acoustic, rock, and soul into something that makes him instantly accessible to any number of audiences.

Errico's arguably at his best when it's just him on the stage with an acoustic guitar, playing his own beats as he strums and making his own loops live on stage. I would venture to say that the best Errico album for beginners is Tonight I Drink You All, a recording from New York's Bowery Ballroom that features not only his amazing stageshow but also his unique sense of humor and a collection of his best songs from the first three albums (Bite Size, Pictures of the Big Vacation, and Skimming).

His previous album, Skimming, was a revolution. The production value was at its highest in his collection, and at the same time less poppy than previous albums. Similar leaps and bounds were not made with All-In, but we do get an album that features the same values with new, great songwriting.

The album starts with "Something New," and more specifically with a great, pulsating drum beat. The track is rousing, and a great opener, and fits its name well with unexpected chord changes. What follows is the good series of rockers and, towards the end, slow acoustic songs that is characteristic of Errico. It's good, solid relationship songwriting, and his smooth voice washes over the tracks perfectly.

I enjoyed the hell out of the album. Strongly recommended tracks: "Something New" and "You Could Be Anywhere." You can buy the album or hear a number of racks from all of Errico's albums (including "Something New") at his official site.

I know it seems like everything I review is "good" and "worth buying," but I will tell you that I probably won't recommend the next book I talk about. Oooh! Populist Mike Spoodles gets snippy. Stay tuned.