Empty Checking with Derek Brink

Check out the companion blog at http://emptychecking.blogspot.com for photos and more!

This week's show is evidence that surrounding yourself with stuff you like can greatly impact your mood. I started out subdued and kinda down, but was my regular self by the end of it. And I owe it all to talking about new music from David Byrne and the Decemberists, pro-wrestling (including my thoughts on the Ultimate Deletion and the stunning return of Daniel Bryan), and random stuff like The Legend of Zelda, Red Dwarf, and Kurt Vonnegut.

Here are the time indexes:

0:00 - Intro, including a startling omission from the previous episode.

8:13 - Music Break #1 - "Earned" from my "Things I Meant to Say" album.

8:44 - Music Stuff, including my excitement at the Flogging Molly/DKM tour and reviews of the new albums by David Byrne and the Decemberists.

19:42 - Music Break #2 - "Napalm" from the "Something to Look Forward to" album.

20:13 - Wrestling Talk including a summary of my conversation with Tony Schiavone, my thoughts on the Ultimate Deletion, and my thoughts on the return of Daniel Bryan

40:59 - Music Break #3 - "The Last Folk Singers" from the "Sorry, I Didn't Mean to Shout" release.

41:32 - Assorted topics including my final thoughts on Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the most recent season of Red Dwarf, and my love of Kurt Vonnegut.

Check out the companion blog at http://emptychecking.blogspot.com!

This week's episode is as Irish as the day is long! With St. Patrick's Day approaching on Saturday, I wanted to celebrate my heritage a little bit and talk about the Irish stuff I love. There's music from the Dubliners to the Pogues to the Chieftains to Flogging Molly to Dropkick Murphys, etc. I spend some time talking about Irish TV and movies too, including a segment on Father Ted. I talk about Irish literature including Angela's Ashes, a Flannery O'Connor story, and several others. I talk about random Irish stuff including my favorite Irish adult beverages from years gone by. There's a lot of Irish stuff in this show, is the bullet point to take away from this paragraph.

Here's the time index:

0:00 - Introduction and opening remarks about being Irish and St. Patrick.

10:23 - Music Break #1 - "Battle Cry" from my "Grounds" album.

10:54 - A brief summary of Irish music I enjoy, both traditional and not-so-traditional.

26:12 - Music Break #2 - "Coming Storm" off the "Things I Meant to Say" album, which I also used last week, so please forgive me.

26:43 - An even briefer summary of Irish TV and movies that I enjoy.

37:44 - Music Break #3 - "A Song for Friendship" from my "Grounds" album

38:19 - A slightly less brief summary of Irish literature that I think is worth your time.

48:13 - Music Break #4 - "Of Death and Dying" from the "Ink-Stained Fingers" album.

48:44 - All the Irish stuff I wanted to talk about that doesn't fit in one of the above categories.

1:02:41 - Music Break #5 - "A Turning" from the "Out from the Light" album.

1:03:37 - Closing thoughts on being Irish, the racial problem facing it, and some additional thoughts.

Thanks for your support!

Check out the companion blog at http://emptychecking.blogspot.com for lots and lots of photos this week!

Sorry this is a week late going up, but I was sick earlier in the week and everything's off schedule. Kept it kind of short this week because my voice is going out thanks to being sick, too. But I talked about a lot! Subjects covered include Loot Crate's Star Trek Mission Crate, the pro-wrestlers shown on the t-shirts in the thumbnail, and music from The Decemberists, Snow Patrol, and Pearl Jam, plus whatever else comes to mind. Stop reading this! Click the thing!

Time Index:

0:00 - Intro

3:34 - Music Break 1 - "You and Your Perfect Life" from my "Something to Look Forward to" album.

4:06 - My critique of the Star Trek Mission Crate and Loot Crate in general.

13:07 - Music Break 2 - "Coming Storm" from my "Things I Meant to Say" album.

13:36 - I discuss some pro-wrestling t-shirts I bought and why I bought them.

25:56 - Music Break 3 - "Not Okay" from my "Trigger Warnings and Sunshine" album.

26:30 - I talk about music from Snow Patrol, The Decemberists, a little bit of Irish stuff, and Pearl Jam.

35:55 - Music Break 4 - "The Best" from my "Ink-Stained Fingers" album.

36:25 - Outro

Thanks for your support!

This week's episode is a tribute to Writer/Director/Etc Kevin Smith, in light of his near "widow maker" heart attack earlier this week. That's all we're doing, so this is a very short description! Check out the accompanying blog at http://emptychecking.blogspot.com!

Be sure to check out the companion blog at http://emptychecking.blogspot.com!

On this week's episode I mostly just talk about the Olympics and my love of Rufus Wainwright, including my thoughts about his show in St. Louis on February 16. I also touch on a few personal things and complain about stuff. The usual. But this episode ended up meaning a lot to me, so I hope you enjoy it!

Time indexes:

0:00 - Introduction and personal stuff.

9:48 - Music Break 1 - "Earned" from my "Things I Meant to Say" album.

10:21 - Olympics-talk...

23:19 - Music Break 2 - "Angel" off of my "Out from the Light" album.

23:50 - My thoughts on Rufus Wainwright, his show in St. Louis last week, and his impact on my life. It gets a little personal.

59:08 - "Sometimes You Say Goodbye" from my "Sorry, I Didn't Mean to Shout" album.

59:40 - Outro stuff. I briefly touch on wrestling, my disappointment in LootCrate, and my brother's new dog. Then I flounder trying to figure out howto say goodbye.

Thanks for your support!

Check out the companion blog at http://emptychecking.blogspot.com!

On this week's episode I talk about what I've seen so far from the Winter Olympics, then discuss music from Mr. Big (including an RIP to Pat Torpey), Roxy Music, Big Star, and AC Newman. After that, I talk about this week's happenings in the WWE. Also some other stuff. It's a fun one.

Time indexes:

0:00 - Intro Stuff/State of the Podcast

6:10 - Music Break 1 - "In My Heart" from my "Out from the Light" album.

6:40 - Olympics!!!

17:53 - Music Break 2 - "Simple Things" from my "Things I Meant to Say" album.

12:23 - Music stuff (with a tribute to Pat Torpey at the top)

38:46 - Music Break 3 - "Everything" from my "Grounds" album.

39:17 - This week in the WWE. Including the revelation that I'm not a fan of the Undertaker.

55:10 - Music Break 4 - "Live Your Life" from my "Sorry, I Didn't Mean to Shout" release.

55:30 - Outro and touching on some loose ends.

Be sure to check out the accompanying blog at http://emptychecking/blogspot.com for more stuff!

This one's all over the place. I talk about the Superbowl and tell a story about how I thought Prince died almost 20 years before he did. I pay tribute to John Mahoney and that descends into talking about all the terrible things that have happened to Kelsey Grammer over the years. I talk a little about my love of The Office. Then I also get into talking about playing Zelda: Breath of the Wild, poorly explain what amiibos do, and stuff like that... Of course, there's talk about the WWE as well. And I talk about new music from Novo Amor/Ed Tullett. All that, plus a bunch of other stuff!

Here are the times for those who wish to skip stuff:

0:00 - Opening remarks and intro music.

3:15 - Music Break 1 - "What Matters Most" off of my "Something to Look Forward To" album.

3:46 - Me pretending to know about football and talking about the Superbowl. (Including a story about how I thought Prince died in 1997 at the 11:48 mark.)

19:06 - Tribute to John Mahoney and a weirdly long examination of my encyclopedic knowledge of the misfortunes that have befallen Kelsey Grammer.

27:22 - I talk about how I like The Office a little.

30:27 - Music Break 2 - "Born in This Town" from my "Out from the Light" album.

30:57 - Gaming talk, with particular emphasis on Zelda: Breath of the Wild

42:57 - Music Break 3 - "El Santo Frente a la Muerte!" from the "Sorry, I Didn't Mean to Shout" release.

43:39 - This week in the WWE.

58:11 - Music Break 4 - "Being There" from the "Things I Meant to Say" album, featuring background vocals by Becky Outlaw, who has just a ridiculously cool last name.

58:43 - Music talk, including my thoughts on "Heiress" by Novo Amor and Ed Tullett

1:07:03 - Outro Music

Thanks for your support!

Be sure to check out the accompanying blog at http://emptychecking.blogspot.com.

Shorter episode this week. I talk a little bit about my grandma to open things up. Next, I talk a bunch about the WWE and the arrival of Rowdy Ronda Rousey. Afterward, I discuss music including the new album from Black Rebel Motorcycle Club ("Wrong Creatures") alongside mentioning that my current listening is Annie Lennox and Rush, then I get excited about the Tragically Hip putting out a BluRay and Rufus Wainwright touring. I also talk about stuff I've got on order, but that hasn't arrived yet, including the oft-delayed Star Trek Mission Crate, a couple of cool t-shirts, and something of an accidentally more intimate nature. It's a shorter episode, but a fun one. Thanks for listening!

Time index:

0:00 - Intro and music

2:54 - Talkin' 'bout Grandma

8:52 - Music Break #1 - "Remember Me" from my "Sorry I Didn't Mean to Shout" release.

9:27 - WWE Wrestling Recap, including me being VERY excited about Ronda Rousey!

19:53 - Music Break #2 - The outro of "Good Things" off of my "Out from the Light" record.

20:22 - Music-talk, including the new album by Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, my current listening--Annie Lennox and Rush, me being excited about the Tragically Hip's last gig being on Blu Ray, and a little bit of me being excited that Rufus Wainwright is coming to town.

29:25 - Music Break #3 - Part of "The Best" from my "Ink-Stained Fingers" album.

29:53 - Other stuff I ordered, including me bitching about Loot Crate delaying the Star Trek Mission Crate, some talk of t-shirts...and something a little more intimate...

44:19 - Music Break #4 - Chorus of "Not Okay" from the "Trigger Warnings and Sunshine" album.

44:55 - Outro, including some talk of darts and the retirement of the great Phil Taylor.

This week's kind of a random show--I felt like I had to cram two weeks into one! I give a general update on my health, post dental surgery, talk about my CD collection, bemoan the closing of a music store I haven't been to in 15 years, celebrate the 20th anniversary of Spice World, talk about local food I enjoy, and a whole bunch of other stuff at the top of the show. I also talk about a new CD release from St. Louis band Grace Basement (spoiler alert: BUY IT). Then I bid farewell to Dolores O'Riordan and also to Neil Diamond (who's still alive, but not at all well). Then I talk about Fuller House, Red Dwarf, and pro-wrestling. Weird episode--which is fun for me! Here's the outline:

0:00 - Intro

1:40 - General health and personal update.

4:06 - Bidding farewell to Dale's Music

7:26 - Stuff I've eaten around town.

10:15 - Talkin' 'bout my CD collection...

12:31 - THE 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF SPICE WORLD!!!

16:12 - Music Break #1 - Part of "Napalm" off of my album "Something to Look Forward To..."

16:42 - Music Stuff, including a review of Grace Basement's "Mississippi Nights," a RIP to Dolores O'Riordan, and my well-wishes to Neil Diamond.

33:49 - Music Break #2 - "Scars" from the "Things I Meant to Say" album.

34:17 - TV Stuff including reviews of Fuller House, Red Dwarf Series XII, and WWE Wrestling (including my thoughts on the 25th anniversary of Monday Night Raw). The wrestling stuff starts at 45:37.

1:02:39 - Music Break #3 - "Give It Up" from "Ink-Stained Fingers"

1:03:10 - Outro Stuff...

Thanks again! Good to be back this week!

On this week's episode, all I do is talk about David Bowie and what he means to me for an hour, in recognition of the second anniversary of his death. Check out the blog at http://emptychecking.blogspot.com for lots more on this one!