• The Hyrdacooler is still recording regularly. They are filling time during the hiatus re-watching and analyzing Lost starting in Season 1. They just recorded an episode discussing Walkabout. Make sure to check out their page on TalkShoe for upcoming episode info and the show’s archive. Here’s the episode:
  
  
  Download it (MP3)
  
• The GSPN Lost Podcast recently interviewed Bonnie Covel of lost.about.com which is definitely worth a listen. Bonnie is extremley knowledgeable about the show and covering Lost is her day job.
  
  
  Download it (MP3)
  
• Clay and Chris of The Dharma Dummies do a character analysis of John Locke which should be a good listen for any fans of Locke. These are the same guys who bring their grandmothers on to the podcast occasionally, which I love.
  
  
  Download it (MP3)
  
• As for upcoming shows, The Lost Flashbacks is changing nights from Monday back to Thursday (or that’s what it seems like for now.) They are all set to record a new show tonight, live on TalkShoe at 9pm EST. Be sure to join.

• The Transmission is preparing to record a podcast reviewing Season 4. They are looking for people to call in and discuss the season. Check it out.
• The Lost Community Book Club has released their summer and fall reading list. All you book worms will love this. And it will give you a chance to geek out about both Lost and your reading habits. View the list then tune into their podcasts.

These guys are amazingly talented; incredibly inventive. They create original songs evoking a wide range of genres and incredibly detailed and provocatively subtle overtones of meaning in every word of the lyrics. I was overwhelmed while writing this. Repeatedly returning to their album and listening to some of the songs I missed at the live show reinforced how truly amazing this stuff was. I am not exaggerating. Familiarity with the intricacies of Lost’s dialogue and plot enhances the experience with this music 10-fold, you can appreciate the lyrics much more if you’ve seen the show. But even people who have never seen Lost could easily be drawn into the music that Previously On Lost has created.

And now, the final chapter from my evening with Previously On Lost, live, at The Knitting Factory on June 1st.

9:10pm – Nicotine buzz now vanished, PBR buzz kicking in; elated that the show was beginning to start. As I entered the venue hall I was handed a lei, which I draped around my neck. That, the PBR, the stage decorations and the no re-entry policy really created the atmosphere of being somewhere else.

Some overall impressions about the performance; there was a lot going on musically here. Many Lost parody bands use other songs much in the way that Weird Al Yankovic does, but not these guys. They take an episode, apply a genre (or “sound”), write the lyrics, which are incredibly funny, ESPECIALLY live, and then put it all together to make an original song. These songs are free of direct imitation of specific artists (or at least as far as I could tell). When you listen to these guys you don’t sit there and think “Oh, they are parodying that song.” Instead it’s clear that each piece is Previously On Lost’s pure creation, not just their lyrics. If you missed it in Part Two, here’s how the concert kicked off:

Adam and Jeff take time between each song to talk to the audience. I wish I had gotten more of these interactions on video, because it would make it clear how funny these guys were in person, as opposed to just on record. Adam began talking about the next song, and who it centered on, without naming him. Of course, I knew the episode was The Economist and was Sayid-centric, Sayid being my favorite character on Lost. Without hesitation I yelled out “Sayid!” “Who was that?” Adam said. “SAYID!” I repeated. “Ah Sayid. Did anyone else know that?” Adam asked the audience. No one raised a hand or shouted back. “No? Ah okay, so just that guy.” I was representing for Sayid. And the rest of the audience was just too weak to go along with it. So began….

The Ballad Of Sayid Jarrah – One of my favorite songs of the evening. A group of back up singers joined Jeff and Adam on stage for this one. Here’s a sample from the song, when they describe Sayid’s double-crossed relationship with Elsa, who is working for The Economist:

About 1/2 way into Season 4 (and the show) I decided I’d test the re-entry rule for a cigarette. This is when my Lost-cross of the evening took place.

“You mind if I have a smoke?” I asked the irritable security guard, who seemed to be busy fending of more Punkies. He looked at me, then looked around for a second, and motioned me over to the red rope on the sidewalk.

“Stand behind the red rope.”

“Thanks buddy.” I tell people they are my buddy whenever I have doubts about their character.

I was not alone in the journey to smoke. Another young man, without the piercings and tatoos, joined me behind the red rope.

“So, what do you think of the show?” He asked.

“It’s great, I’m a big fan of Lost, these guys really know what they’re talking about” I said. We got talking and schooling came up fairly quickly. I found out what college he went to and mentioned that I knew a bunch of people that went there. I spouted off some names and one lit his eyebrow.

“You know her?” He said.

“Yeah, I dated her when I was like 14.”

“Really?” He didn’t seem too proud of me. “She was my P.C.” I had no idea what a P.C. was.

“P.C.?” I asked.

“Yeah, was she really controlling?” He continued, oblivious to the fact that I didn’t understand what “P.C.” meant.

“I suppose she was….” Wow. So this guy knew her. My Lost evening had become that much more complete with its own Lost-cross. I might say “only in New York”… but clearly this was an “only on The Island” sort of moment. We went back inside.

Smoking had cost me. I ended up missing Michael’s return, Ben’s trip to the future and Jack’s introduction to a fiendishly self-destructive lifestyle. Within seconds it became clear that we had reached Cabin Fever, or, Move It! as Previously On Lost calls their re-cap of that episode. Excellent. While I had missed a good deal, I was just in time for the episodes There’s No Place Like Home, There’s No Place Like Home and There’s No Place Like Home.

Minutes later began the final song, All My Friends Go Back, a Lost meets Amazing Grace gospel rendition. They had a lot of fun with this one, as did I.

An hour later I was back uptown.

Uh-oh. Shuttle bus time.

I decided instead of cramming onto the bus I would just walk home, who knows, maybe I’d find more money on the street (I didn’t). When I got home I took a picture of my tangible memories of a truly wonderful evening.

I leave you with this folks, a piece of a song that I missed on my smoke break, but later came to love when listening to their album:

Previously On Lost is a band that re-caps each episode of Lost. “The Tale Of Season 4 And The Oceanic Six” is available now for $7, a true bargain, so make sure to pick it up. To check out Previously On Lost online, visit their MySpace page. Also make sure to read Part One of this story, where I chronicle my discovery of $21 on the sidewalk, and Part Two, where I end up spending it all.

To download it click here. To listen to and download the other renditions click here.

How does Penny’s dad know of the backup plans Ben had?

the Widmeister always knows what’s occurring
whenever there is trouble stirring choppers are a-whiring
and the camouflaged men are conferring

Best Found Friends stick together (through whatever)
Sharing moms and hanging out dead dad’s wakes
Best Found Friends stick together (forever)
Let you grab the last piece of surprise birthday cakes (oh those are the best!)

Leading, the way against doctors orders
Mr. Mom and Genghis Khan tell them why Claire wasn’t there
the camouflaged men are longing for their quarters

This is the way to enter the station:
Go in through the hole there and go left 20 paces till you see a
Patch of anthuriums in alcove near the north wall.
Reach down with your left hand and activate the elevator that takes you down to the real orchid station!

I’ll be posting Part Three of my trip to see Previously On Lost live tomorrow. To listen to Previously On Lost and purchase their new album visit their MySpace page. The live song recorded last Sunday is on their MySpace page as a free download at the moment so make sure to grab it.

Via POL’s Blog on MySpace

UPDATE 2: And a special shout out to Rodimus Ben for all the questions tonight, he is the genius behind all the questions of Lost Jeopardy. Please be sure to check out his blog.

Original Post: In less than two hours Cranky Fanatic will be bringing back Lost Jeopardy! Join live as Amanda, of The Lost Flashbacks Podcast, defends her title in a Lost Podcasting All-Star challenge. The contestants will all receive a painting by Chris Oatley and the match up is sure to prove intense.

To join live go here at 9PM EST. For more info on how to join Cranky Fanatic live click here.