01/21/05’s illustrious band:

Spock's Beard

Brought to you by one of my new favorite blogs, Sci Fi Daily, where hosts Bill and Greg discuss all things science fictional.

I'm on a geek streak, ladies and gentlemen. (As if you needed telling.) In today's edition of Sci Fi Daily, host Bill mentioned having run across a reference to a rock band called Spock's Beard -- so unlike most BND bands, this is a real one. The band's name comes from the classic Star Trek episode "Mirror, Mirror," in which Kirk and a couple other lucky crew members are transported into a parallel universe. In the mirror universe, they're not the good guys anymore, and you can tell Spock is an especially tough customer because he has a goatee. Ooh, dangerous facial hair!

Since Spock was always my favorite character and I'm always looking for interesting new bands, naturally I had to follow this up.

Spock's Beard looks like your basic small-time band. It's unclear quite what type of music they play, although it involves the standard guitar, bass, drums, and keyboard, as well as more exotic instruments like the cello, theremin, and saw. The musicians all appear to be over 30, maybe over 35. They have a nice web site, a funky logo, albums for sale, and a tour calendar heavy on European venues. I'm too cheap to spring for a CD, especially with my player still on the fritz, but I'm sure it's grand.

Moral of the story: Read sci-fi and expand your mind in all directions.

Today around the world: January 21 is Feast of the Sacrifice (Festival of the Sheep) in Cameroon. Spock would not have participated in the sacrificing of a sheep; Vulcans are vegetarian.