The drive last night wasn't all bad. We pulled in at about 5am, earlier than expected.
Upon pulling up to my ghetto palace, Corey commented "Aww...look at your scary-ass neighborhood!"
I am still laughing at how he said it.
My dear wife has kept the house so damn clean that I barely feel right in it. It's amazing. I was so glad to see her and the cats. I missed that little lady a whole lot. I am very, VERY lucky and I never forget that.
So I am nearly back to the pre-tour life I know so well. The bums are lining up across the street for a free lunch and I have some very happy cats circling my feet. I love where I live, actually, and sometimes can't believe that it feels so good to be some place- a completely foreign sensation in my life.
Last night we all mentioned how we had just gotten into the rhythm of touring and now it's pretty much over (we play Chicago tomorrow). It's funny how it all registers with you- it takes days and days to adjust; your chemistry has to alter in a way to a life of meeting several times more people in a small amount of time. Life stretches out. Two days ago will seem like two weeks ago because the typical, "normal" mind isn't accustomed to so much living condensed into a small amount of time. It's not comfortable, really, but the good outweighs the bad so you do it.
Then, suddenly, it all falls into place and you find your spot; like the teeth of a gear finally lining up in a larger mechanism. It's only been in the past few days that it felt like I could do this all the time; the tour could go on for another two months and that would be fine.
BUT- it sure is nice to be able to wash my clothes, take a regular hot shower, and eat Indi's.
I am excited about tonight's show. We are surely a more tuned machine than our first Louisville show a few weeks back. This incarnation is still finding its way but it's something special. I think Brian Foor might join and that excited the hell out of me.
Tomorrow night's show in Chicago will be Russian Circle's homecoming so I reckon it will be a a good one. I dunno what that crowd will think of us, as always, but Chicago has always been pretty good to the Phantoms.
Past that, we plan on recording a lot. This music and these people make me very happy. I am truly lucky.
Now let's see if we play worth a shit tonight.
Friday, December 11, 2009
#8 Montreal/Toronto/Toledo/Cleveland
Montreal...did I write about that?
It wasn't all bad- just kinda' weird. Entering into Canada wasn't as traumatic as we had built it up to be; sorta' anti-climatic. The prior night we spent in a Holiday Inn with Russian Circles and Young Widows where we were all too tired to have much of the wild time that is expected of young, wild, handsome lads as ourselves. Anyways- we slept as normal, bland, white people do and we slept late. I was the first one up and saw the Russian Circles guys off. I hung out in the lobby, reading and listening to the passer-byers talk of accounts, clients, frequent-flyer miles, and assorted other items of dumb-shit empty=headed bullshit as I read USA Today- America's favorite paper for pie charts and trivial bullshit.
I went to the restaurant and found myself to be the to be the first patron of the morning. I read a bit of "The Man With the Golden Arm" (which, with all of the excitement of late, has taken a long-ass time to pick through) before striking up a conversation with my server. She was a sweet lady of 49 from Hamburg, Germany. She told me about working in a haunted hotel in Colorado, seeing Bob Dylan in 1978, and quite a bit more. Slowly, Phantom Family Halo and Young Widow types trickled in. We had a good time, a good breakfast, and slowly collected ourselves enough to make the trip into Canada.
We stopped to clean the van thoroughly before crossing. The border station was as expected. We sat in the office and I don't think they even searched the van. As per usual, Corey had us all laughing a bit too much which probably made us look a tad suspicious. They let us in though.
We drove straight through to Montreal which wasn't too far away. Unfortunately, our GPS-less lifestyle came back to haunt us AGAIN as our Google maps directions had cut off a few steps. This resulted in us arriving at the wrong end of the street we were to be on. It was cold and snowy which added to the tension. We stopped to ask the occasional French-Canadian for assistance but they seemed to be just as confused as we were. We somehow made it.
We played a venue called Il Motore which was an alright place with awesome staff. The soundguy was very helpful and the bartenders, "Trashy" and Phillip, were great to us. Phillip was the poster child for French student culture with hip glasses and generous sideburns. "Trashy" was your somewhat common rock'n'roll bartender with tattoos and generous breasts that were not easily contained by that particular evening's choice of attire (an altered t-shirt with the collar cut out). They were both very cool though.
The opening band was called Don't Let Charles Take the Money. When I saw that on a poster I thought that it was somebody's suggestion about the who shouldn't work the door. They were an interesting 3-piece. Turns out that their singer/guitarist had quit only a week or two prior. Way to soldier on!
Our set went pretty well but was kinda' odd. We really couldn't gauge the reaction if there was one during it. A lot of people talked to me about how much they liked it. The bassist in the opening band was very excited about it and said that he was happy to see a band that wasn't so "typical" of these shows. He said he was a fan of Blue Cheer, Hawkwind, and others. He was blown away to hear that Phantom Family Halo had opened for Hawkwind.
Young Widows took the stage and kicked ass, per usual. I noticed that the crowd wasn't too motivated for their set either. Perhaps this was/is a typical Montreal crowd? Perhaps they are very laid back? Russian Circles did their thing and I detected remnants of a pulse during their set. I think alcohol had started to work its magic by then...
We stayed at Aaron R.'s place. He used to be in Sapat and lived in Louisville before relocating to Montreal. He was awesome to us, giving us a place to crash and provided Russian tea, orange juice, bread and jam, and excellent conversation the following morning. That dude rules.
We got on the road and managed to get out of Montreal without much hassle. It was a lonmg drive through the Canadian wilderness which reminded me a lot of Oklahoma. We stopped for something eat at a random exit along the way and investigated the two options of convenient store food or lunch at Subway. Dom and I went in and out of both before deciding to do a bit of both. We ate in the van and got on our way.
Just a few miles outside of town we were pulled over by a cop. He approached the van slowly with his hand on his gun. We hadn't been speeding so we were all a little baffled and nervous about why we were being stopped. Behind the officer was a guy in plain clothes who looked in through my window and looked to the cop, confirming...something? The officer asked for our ID's and our destination. We explained that we're an American band- and resisted the urge to break into song. We showed him our itinerary and the officer pretty much got cool right away, saying "This will only take a minute."
Turns out Corey recognized the guy in plain clothes from the Subway. The officer said everything was fine so we asked why we had been pulled over. He said that there had been a call about our being "suspicious characters" and that were were "behaving suspiciously" and such. He mentioned the way we had gone in and out of the store and the Subway (ignoring our purchases I guess). Weird. He said "If you collaborate with the police when this happens, everything will be fine."
(Currently, Phantom Family Halo has no plans to collaborate with the Canadian police on any such projects.)
Toronto was frigid. We loaded into Sneeky Dee's which required carrying gear up two sets of stairs. That's always a good way to get the blood going though. The downstairs food smelled very unhealthy but very delicious. I hadn't eaten since the Subway fiasco but we had a lot to do in very little time before our set. I set up the projector and people were let in right after that.
Our set was great and very well-received. Some very, very enthusiastic kids cornered me right away when I settled at the merch stand, quizzing me on pedals, influences, and such. I was given many high-fives, the international language of ass-kickedness.
Unfortunately, I began to feel very weak and rotten. I retired to the van. I should have eaten something before we played. We loaded out after the show as the blizzard was hitting. We sold more records and shirts there than anywhere else on the tour.
Neal navigated through the high winds, snow, and ice in search of a place to stop for the night. We stopped by a few hotels and they were all rasising their rates under the circumstances. We settled at a White Knights Inn at about 2 or 3am. The night guy there said "Don't make a bunch of noise."
Neal rated this as the second worst motel of the tour.
Conditions were much better the following day. We got on our way to cross back into the USA. We joked about how easy it would be to get back into the USA- that we may be asked to give the password of "McDonalds"or something- and we'd be back in. Turns out that we were kept longer getting back in than when we left. They searched the van and questioned us on how we were compensated for our performances in Canada. We were good kids and eventually released to go on to Kalamazoo............which we got the call on right after that. The show was canceled due to the weather.
We met up with Young Widows and we all went to a Days Inn outside of Toledo. We walked in to the place (after making reservations on Priceline) and it was FROZEN. Unbelievably cold. I couldn't believe that they could legally operate this way. All of the motel staff wore heavy coats and gloves. We checked into our rooms, cranked the heat, and reported to the bar. The bar was even MORE cold as there were windows everywhere. So we set at this bar in our winter coats, ordering drinks, and visiting with the hacking and coughing bartender, Debbie. Neal and I put $5 into the jukebox and discovered how limited our options were there. We ended up playing a whole lot of Rolling Stones and most of Metallica's "Ride the Lightning".
A guy came into the bar when one of those Metallica songs were on, headbanging and giving a big "hell yeah". He was decked out in some Jack Daniels apparel. He asked Neal if he knew where he might could find some Percocets(sp?). Heh.
We ordered pizza that wasn't very good and went fast. So we followed that up with an order of Chinese food. We retired to the Phantom Family Halo room, all piling in to watch "Decline of Western Civilization 2: The Metal Years". A good time was had by all though we were all asleep by 11pm.
The temperature was up and down all night. Bleh.
The following morning we got on our way to Cleveland. Turns out, ol' boy int he Jack Daniels gear was in a band called Primer 55. I think they have Louisville ties. Weird.
The drive went fast. We (Widows and Halos) all went to the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame. This was my first time and I enjoyed it. I am a sucker for things like that- seeing handwritten and drawn items by Hendrix, Lennon, Patti Smith, Talking Heads, Aretha Franklin, and on and such. Seeing clothes worn by Otis Redding was a mixed bag as I was blown away but the football-loving jack-asses next to me were laughing, not knowing who he was and asking why Zorro's costume was there. I was the last one to leave.
Goddamn goddamn it was cold outside of that place! It sits by the lake there so it was painfully cold.
We drove over to the Grog Shop and loaded in. It's a great venue and all of the staff were awesome. We all walked around, hitting up the local record and movie stores. I went to a coffee shop where I got online for a bit. A kid asked me about the stickers on my laptop. The girl working said I looked like Bob Dylan. Another girl said I looked like Tom Waits. I thought I looked like a bag of hammered dogshit- dirty and badly in need of a shave.
All three touring bands had a lot of fun visiting in the backstage area before the show. The bathroom back there had autographed tickets of some of the acts that had played there, including the Meat Puppets who played there the night after Lucky Pineapple shared the stage with them in Louisville. Cool.
Awesome dude extraordinaire, David Brooks, was there. It's always good to visit with that guy.
Our set............not so hot. We really need a soundcheck to do the current set right. I couldn't hear myself so I asked for more. I hate "talking shop" on stage but sometimes it has to go that way. After that I couldn't hear anybody else. It was rough. We skipped some songs. That kinda' sucked but I understood why.
People seemed to like it a lot and we sold some stuff before hauling nuts to load out, say goodbyes, and began a night drive back to Louisville.
Right now I am watching the battery die on this thing...................so....good night.
Patton Oswalt is our co-pilot.
It wasn't all bad- just kinda' weird. Entering into Canada wasn't as traumatic as we had built it up to be; sorta' anti-climatic. The prior night we spent in a Holiday Inn with Russian Circles and Young Widows where we were all too tired to have much of the wild time that is expected of young, wild, handsome lads as ourselves. Anyways- we slept as normal, bland, white people do and we slept late. I was the first one up and saw the Russian Circles guys off. I hung out in the lobby, reading and listening to the passer-byers talk of accounts, clients, frequent-flyer miles, and assorted other items of dumb-shit empty=headed bullshit as I read USA Today- America's favorite paper for pie charts and trivial bullshit.
I went to the restaurant and found myself to be the to be the first patron of the morning. I read a bit of "The Man With the Golden Arm" (which, with all of the excitement of late, has taken a long-ass time to pick through) before striking up a conversation with my server. She was a sweet lady of 49 from Hamburg, Germany. She told me about working in a haunted hotel in Colorado, seeing Bob Dylan in 1978, and quite a bit more. Slowly, Phantom Family Halo and Young Widow types trickled in. We had a good time, a good breakfast, and slowly collected ourselves enough to make the trip into Canada.
We stopped to clean the van thoroughly before crossing. The border station was as expected. We sat in the office and I don't think they even searched the van. As per usual, Corey had us all laughing a bit too much which probably made us look a tad suspicious. They let us in though.
We drove straight through to Montreal which wasn't too far away. Unfortunately, our GPS-less lifestyle came back to haunt us AGAIN as our Google maps directions had cut off a few steps. This resulted in us arriving at the wrong end of the street we were to be on. It was cold and snowy which added to the tension. We stopped to ask the occasional French-Canadian for assistance but they seemed to be just as confused as we were. We somehow made it.
We played a venue called Il Motore which was an alright place with awesome staff. The soundguy was very helpful and the bartenders, "Trashy" and Phillip, were great to us. Phillip was the poster child for French student culture with hip glasses and generous sideburns. "Trashy" was your somewhat common rock'n'roll bartender with tattoos and generous breasts that were not easily contained by that particular evening's choice of attire (an altered t-shirt with the collar cut out). They were both very cool though.
The opening band was called Don't Let Charles Take the Money. When I saw that on a poster I thought that it was somebody's suggestion about the who shouldn't work the door. They were an interesting 3-piece. Turns out that their singer/guitarist had quit only a week or two prior. Way to soldier on!
Our set went pretty well but was kinda' odd. We really couldn't gauge the reaction if there was one during it. A lot of people talked to me about how much they liked it. The bassist in the opening band was very excited about it and said that he was happy to see a band that wasn't so "typical" of these shows. He said he was a fan of Blue Cheer, Hawkwind, and others. He was blown away to hear that Phantom Family Halo had opened for Hawkwind.
Young Widows took the stage and kicked ass, per usual. I noticed that the crowd wasn't too motivated for their set either. Perhaps this was/is a typical Montreal crowd? Perhaps they are very laid back? Russian Circles did their thing and I detected remnants of a pulse during their set. I think alcohol had started to work its magic by then...
We stayed at Aaron R.'s place. He used to be in Sapat and lived in Louisville before relocating to Montreal. He was awesome to us, giving us a place to crash and provided Russian tea, orange juice, bread and jam, and excellent conversation the following morning. That dude rules.
We got on the road and managed to get out of Montreal without much hassle. It was a lonmg drive through the Canadian wilderness which reminded me a lot of Oklahoma. We stopped for something eat at a random exit along the way and investigated the two options of convenient store food or lunch at Subway. Dom and I went in and out of both before deciding to do a bit of both. We ate in the van and got on our way.
Just a few miles outside of town we were pulled over by a cop. He approached the van slowly with his hand on his gun. We hadn't been speeding so we were all a little baffled and nervous about why we were being stopped. Behind the officer was a guy in plain clothes who looked in through my window and looked to the cop, confirming...something? The officer asked for our ID's and our destination. We explained that we're an American band- and resisted the urge to break into song. We showed him our itinerary and the officer pretty much got cool right away, saying "This will only take a minute."
Turns out Corey recognized the guy in plain clothes from the Subway. The officer said everything was fine so we asked why we had been pulled over. He said that there had been a call about our being "suspicious characters" and that were were "behaving suspiciously" and such. He mentioned the way we had gone in and out of the store and the Subway (ignoring our purchases I guess). Weird. He said "If you collaborate with the police when this happens, everything will be fine."
(Currently, Phantom Family Halo has no plans to collaborate with the Canadian police on any such projects.)
Toronto was frigid. We loaded into Sneeky Dee's which required carrying gear up two sets of stairs. That's always a good way to get the blood going though. The downstairs food smelled very unhealthy but very delicious. I hadn't eaten since the Subway fiasco but we had a lot to do in very little time before our set. I set up the projector and people were let in right after that.
Our set was great and very well-received. Some very, very enthusiastic kids cornered me right away when I settled at the merch stand, quizzing me on pedals, influences, and such. I was given many high-fives, the international language of ass-kickedness.
Unfortunately, I began to feel very weak and rotten. I retired to the van. I should have eaten something before we played. We loaded out after the show as the blizzard was hitting. We sold more records and shirts there than anywhere else on the tour.
Neal navigated through the high winds, snow, and ice in search of a place to stop for the night. We stopped by a few hotels and they were all rasising their rates under the circumstances. We settled at a White Knights Inn at about 2 or 3am. The night guy there said "Don't make a bunch of noise."
Neal rated this as the second worst motel of the tour.
Conditions were much better the following day. We got on our way to cross back into the USA. We joked about how easy it would be to get back into the USA- that we may be asked to give the password of "McDonalds"or something- and we'd be back in. Turns out that we were kept longer getting back in than when we left. They searched the van and questioned us on how we were compensated for our performances in Canada. We were good kids and eventually released to go on to Kalamazoo............which we got the call on right after that. The show was canceled due to the weather.
We met up with Young Widows and we all went to a Days Inn outside of Toledo. We walked in to the place (after making reservations on Priceline) and it was FROZEN. Unbelievably cold. I couldn't believe that they could legally operate this way. All of the motel staff wore heavy coats and gloves. We checked into our rooms, cranked the heat, and reported to the bar. The bar was even MORE cold as there were windows everywhere. So we set at this bar in our winter coats, ordering drinks, and visiting with the hacking and coughing bartender, Debbie. Neal and I put $5 into the jukebox and discovered how limited our options were there. We ended up playing a whole lot of Rolling Stones and most of Metallica's "Ride the Lightning".
A guy came into the bar when one of those Metallica songs were on, headbanging and giving a big "hell yeah". He was decked out in some Jack Daniels apparel. He asked Neal if he knew where he might could find some Percocets(sp?). Heh.
We ordered pizza that wasn't very good and went fast. So we followed that up with an order of Chinese food. We retired to the Phantom Family Halo room, all piling in to watch "Decline of Western Civilization 2: The Metal Years". A good time was had by all though we were all asleep by 11pm.
The temperature was up and down all night. Bleh.
The following morning we got on our way to Cleveland. Turns out, ol' boy int he Jack Daniels gear was in a band called Primer 55. I think they have Louisville ties. Weird.
The drive went fast. We (Widows and Halos) all went to the Rock'n'Roll Hall of Fame. This was my first time and I enjoyed it. I am a sucker for things like that- seeing handwritten and drawn items by Hendrix, Lennon, Patti Smith, Talking Heads, Aretha Franklin, and on and such. Seeing clothes worn by Otis Redding was a mixed bag as I was blown away but the football-loving jack-asses next to me were laughing, not knowing who he was and asking why Zorro's costume was there. I was the last one to leave.
Goddamn goddamn it was cold outside of that place! It sits by the lake there so it was painfully cold.
We drove over to the Grog Shop and loaded in. It's a great venue and all of the staff were awesome. We all walked around, hitting up the local record and movie stores. I went to a coffee shop where I got online for a bit. A kid asked me about the stickers on my laptop. The girl working said I looked like Bob Dylan. Another girl said I looked like Tom Waits. I thought I looked like a bag of hammered dogshit- dirty and badly in need of a shave.
All three touring bands had a lot of fun visiting in the backstage area before the show. The bathroom back there had autographed tickets of some of the acts that had played there, including the Meat Puppets who played there the night after Lucky Pineapple shared the stage with them in Louisville. Cool.
Awesome dude extraordinaire, David Brooks, was there. It's always good to visit with that guy.
Our set............not so hot. We really need a soundcheck to do the current set right. I couldn't hear myself so I asked for more. I hate "talking shop" on stage but sometimes it has to go that way. After that I couldn't hear anybody else. It was rough. We skipped some songs. That kinda' sucked but I understood why.
People seemed to like it a lot and we sold some stuff before hauling nuts to load out, say goodbyes, and began a night drive back to Louisville.
Right now I am watching the battery die on this thing...................so....good night.
Patton Oswalt is our co-pilot.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
#7 Richmond
A looooong ass day.
We drove away from Philadelphia and right into snow. Not too bad but it did have the potential to get worse. We called Evan and arranged a rendezvous w/ Young Widows at a Cracker Barrel.
The meal was less-than-mediocre and the service was comically bad. Girl did not give a FUCK and made no bones about it. It was fascinating, really.
The Widows got on the road pretty quickly. I was in the van with Corey when a large tour bus pulls in. I made a joke that was something like "I wonder what kind of rock'n'roll cheese-dick this is?" and watched as the door opened in the distance. All we could see were some characters dressed rather goofily; like a cross between clowns and bikers. I saw Neal walking down the length of the building and said "We'll get the Neal assessment on this- the 'Neal down-low'..."
As they passed each other I saw him laugh. Dom followed and did the same. They returned to the van and said that it was Rob Zombie and crew. Heh. Weird weird weird.
We got on the road and snow got worse and worse. There were accidents all along the way. I drove as Corey was feeling the post-trauma of the last Phantom tour in the northwest.
It was an exhausting drive but we made it to Richmond. We followed the directions to the club that was curiously situated between a BW3's and a few strip clubs. Corey went in to check on parking only to find that the show had been MOVED. Jesus.
We followed the promoter to the new location which was/is an olf firehouse. We loaded in but, unlike every other show of the tour, we were not to be the opener. The opening band began to play and I looked at the merch table as I sat up. They had a lot of bible pamphlets. Odd.
Sure enough- they were all about the Jeebus. As we sat upstairs with the Russian Circles guys, a long pause came rather soon in their set. We all looked at each other and said "Are they done???".....no. They had stopped to talk about how, if you're ever sad and lonely, you can talk to the creator. Wow. They did this again except, during the second attempt at testimonial, they told the crowd that there would be an ambient part of the next song and that was an open invitation to pray. Fascinating.
We played and it was WEIRD. The P.A. is not that snuff and our lack of soundcheck was certainly a hindrance on the usual set. I could see blown speakers on the stage. Yikes. I was tripping over unused mic stands and kept hearing a constant feedback. I asked "What the fuck is that sound???" but I never found the answer.
The crowd was, again, surprisingly cool with it all. I felt like a lame-ass though. Oh well.
The "backstage area" is the upstairs part of the former firehouse. The original poles are still here but floored over where half-drunken, 30+ year-olds are not able to fulfill childhood, subtly homoerotic fantasies of sliding down the old firestation pole. Probably a good thing it is floored over.
Between this structure's former inhabitants being firemen and the current guests being musicians and artists...one could not imagine the variety of STD's that have passed through those doors.
I want to try and talk the other guys into watching a movie at the motel room. After seeing Rob Zombie today, I am tempted to push "Human Experiments" on them. After all, it stars the amazing and underrated character actor Geoffrey Lewis.
We drove away from Philadelphia and right into snow. Not too bad but it did have the potential to get worse. We called Evan and arranged a rendezvous w/ Young Widows at a Cracker Barrel.
The meal was less-than-mediocre and the service was comically bad. Girl did not give a FUCK and made no bones about it. It was fascinating, really.
The Widows got on the road pretty quickly. I was in the van with Corey when a large tour bus pulls in. I made a joke that was something like "I wonder what kind of rock'n'roll cheese-dick this is?" and watched as the door opened in the distance. All we could see were some characters dressed rather goofily; like a cross between clowns and bikers. I saw Neal walking down the length of the building and said "We'll get the Neal assessment on this- the 'Neal down-low'..."
As they passed each other I saw him laugh. Dom followed and did the same. They returned to the van and said that it was Rob Zombie and crew. Heh. Weird weird weird.
We got on the road and snow got worse and worse. There were accidents all along the way. I drove as Corey was feeling the post-trauma of the last Phantom tour in the northwest.
It was an exhausting drive but we made it to Richmond. We followed the directions to the club that was curiously situated between a BW3's and a few strip clubs. Corey went in to check on parking only to find that the show had been MOVED. Jesus.
We followed the promoter to the new location which was/is an olf firehouse. We loaded in but, unlike every other show of the tour, we were not to be the opener. The opening band began to play and I looked at the merch table as I sat up. They had a lot of bible pamphlets. Odd.
Sure enough- they were all about the Jeebus. As we sat upstairs with the Russian Circles guys, a long pause came rather soon in their set. We all looked at each other and said "Are they done???".....no. They had stopped to talk about how, if you're ever sad and lonely, you can talk to the creator. Wow. They did this again except, during the second attempt at testimonial, they told the crowd that there would be an ambient part of the next song and that was an open invitation to pray. Fascinating.
We played and it was WEIRD. The P.A. is not that snuff and our lack of soundcheck was certainly a hindrance on the usual set. I could see blown speakers on the stage. Yikes. I was tripping over unused mic stands and kept hearing a constant feedback. I asked "What the fuck is that sound???" but I never found the answer.
The crowd was, again, surprisingly cool with it all. I felt like a lame-ass though. Oh well.
The "backstage area" is the upstairs part of the former firehouse. The original poles are still here but floored over where half-drunken, 30+ year-olds are not able to fulfill childhood, subtly homoerotic fantasies of sliding down the old firestation pole. Probably a good thing it is floored over.
Between this structure's former inhabitants being firemen and the current guests being musicians and artists...one could not imagine the variety of STD's that have passed through those doors.
I want to try and talk the other guys into watching a movie at the motel room. After seeing Rob Zombie today, I am tempted to push "Human Experiments" on them. After all, it stars the amazing and underrated character actor Geoffrey Lewis.
#6 Philadelphia Morning
Young Widows and Phantom Family Halo are currently populating the floor of a very small apartment in Philadelphia. It seems rather ghetto-ish around here but- who the fuck am I to say that? (Where I live there is a porch view of the projects.)
Following the show we caravaned here and settled in. I don't recall our host's name but he has been fantastic to us. I immediately took the shower while most of the folks walked around the corner to Kung Fu Necktie. A shower has never felt so good nor changed my worldview so effectively. Damn I was nasty.
I made my bed on the hardwood floor and talked to Nick from Young Widows for a long time. He's a cool guy- very quiet but has come around. He doesn't drink and is very respectful. The guy rocks the fuck out when they play. (He pretty much head-bangs from the waist up the entire set. Neal commented on his neck muscles and said "Please don't headbutt me. It'd kill me.")
After we visited I walked down to Kung Fu Necktie to say "hi" to everyone. I had one drink and it was last call. Fine with me. I was beat.
We walked back.
I had a dream that I woke up and all of our gear lined the wall of this small apartment. It had to be loaded before we would leave.
Following the show we caravaned here and settled in. I don't recall our host's name but he has been fantastic to us. I immediately took the shower while most of the folks walked around the corner to Kung Fu Necktie. A shower has never felt so good nor changed my worldview so effectively. Damn I was nasty.
I made my bed on the hardwood floor and talked to Nick from Young Widows for a long time. He's a cool guy- very quiet but has come around. He doesn't drink and is very respectful. The guy rocks the fuck out when they play. (He pretty much head-bangs from the waist up the entire set. Neal commented on his neck muscles and said "Please don't headbutt me. It'd kill me.")
After we visited I walked down to Kung Fu Necktie to say "hi" to everyone. I had one drink and it was last call. Fine with me. I was beat.
We walked back.
I had a dream that I woke up and all of our gear lined the wall of this small apartment. It had to be loaded before we would leave.
Friday, December 4, 2009
#5 Philadelphia Post-Show
This is what I guarantee to be an extremely rare post-show blog as I am sitting at the merch table.
The Young Widows have had a rough day. They showed up as we were soundchecking and as kids lined up outside, waiting to enter. They did say that their van runs super smooth now so that's good news.
The sound system here had a fucked up sub woofer so that was the cause for even more delay. They got it fixed though.
The soundman was listening to the Dismemberment Plan's "The Emergency and I" before we played. It was appreciated as, typically, you have to endure terrible hardcore and lame-ass wannabe punk bands. Last night in D.C. was an AWESOME batch of jams featuring field recorded island songs and a lot of great dub stuff.
Our set went well and had a pretty good response, maybe one of the better ones. Given the quick soundcheck I was pleased. It's a weird room, being the downstairs of a church but it got the job done.
I asked for more Jesus in the monitors. That was a joke. (Do I need to explain why?)
Guitar nerd kids liked it. They like pedals.
The backstage is the actual church. It's very old and has this HUGE pipe organ. I can't wait to go back and get some photos and video. It's kinda' weird to have a large tub full of iced beers back there for the drinkin'.
I don't smell so good.
The Young Widows have had a rough day. They showed up as we were soundchecking and as kids lined up outside, waiting to enter. They did say that their van runs super smooth now so that's good news.
The sound system here had a fucked up sub woofer so that was the cause for even more delay. They got it fixed though.
The soundman was listening to the Dismemberment Plan's "The Emergency and I" before we played. It was appreciated as, typically, you have to endure terrible hardcore and lame-ass wannabe punk bands. Last night in D.C. was an AWESOME batch of jams featuring field recorded island songs and a lot of great dub stuff.
Our set went well and had a pretty good response, maybe one of the better ones. Given the quick soundcheck I was pleased. It's a weird room, being the downstairs of a church but it got the job done.
I asked for more Jesus in the monitors. That was a joke. (Do I need to explain why?)
Guitar nerd kids liked it. They like pedals.
The backstage is the actual church. It's very old and has this HUGE pipe organ. I can't wait to go back and get some photos and video. It's kinda' weird to have a large tub full of iced beers back there for the drinkin'.
I don't smell so good.
#4 Post D.C./Philly Arrival
Currently I am in the First Unitarian Church in Philadelphia. I am experiencing a terrible stench that the locals call "shit berries"- a berry that falls from the tree outside of the church. It is endangered and therefore cannot be cut down. Everybody is stepping on the berries and tracking in this god awful smell. It's wretched.
Last night found us in Washington D.C. at DC9. It was a smaller, older club where the bands play upstairs. We loaded in, soundchecked, and ate a nice little meal that was generously provided by the venue. They even had a projector already mounted so that saved us some hassle. The set went very well and we got a polite response. I'm sure that I have said that before as it is surely the case with this entire tour. If anything we are grateful for this as this incarnation is still very much getting familiar with how we should and do execute a set. It's encouraging that these kids who are at these shows for some aggressive music don't hate it and end up chanting for metal.
Anyways, I think I am becoming more confident with my guitar playing and vocals on these songs and have been receiving some very generous compliments in recent days from the audience. The other thing I am always asked is if my light mounted to my guitar that I use to activate/manipulate my theremin is a "chaos pad"...which it surely is not. (After all, that sounds expensive- which means I would not have one.)
The rest of the night was spent reminding ourselves again how old we are as I figured out that I had played with the bass player from Russian Circles many years ago when he was in Botch. Another guy came in and he was once in Thunderbirds are Now. Another guy came in and he was in Frotus. We all had stories for each other though most of those guys are now fathers and have real jobs. I just have a pathetic half-beard and a foul stench.
I did get to ask ol' boy from Frotus if they got the name from a Monkees episode in which there was "the frotus room", which was also a reference to a small room where the Monkees hung out and smoked pot when they weren't needed on camera. He was stunned that I knew this and said that I was one of maybe three people EVER who had asked. He also said that he once took a piss at a urinal next to The Nez. Wow.
We stayed with a guy named Ross who was AWESOME to us. I slept well on a very comfortable couch. I have had two or three dreams about Todd Cook getting a haircut and being clean shaven. Frightening.
We got up this morning and thanked Ross. He gave us each a CD of his band which has the most awesome fold-out art of any album EVER. I promise.
On our way out of D.C. we saw a Whole Foods where we spent a long time utilizing the clean facilities and eating. This made us feel a lot better about life in general. I bought macaroons to share with everybody. I am still full many hours later.
We talked to Evan earlier and the Young Widows van is sick. He is going to have to pay $500 to get it up and running. I hope they make it here on-time.
Here in Philly the weather is cool. Not bad though. It's an early show and, as always, I feel a bit of anxiety about how we will be received by the younger crowd. We shall see.
Last night found us in Washington D.C. at DC9. It was a smaller, older club where the bands play upstairs. We loaded in, soundchecked, and ate a nice little meal that was generously provided by the venue. They even had a projector already mounted so that saved us some hassle. The set went very well and we got a polite response. I'm sure that I have said that before as it is surely the case with this entire tour. If anything we are grateful for this as this incarnation is still very much getting familiar with how we should and do execute a set. It's encouraging that these kids who are at these shows for some aggressive music don't hate it and end up chanting for metal.
Anyways, I think I am becoming more confident with my guitar playing and vocals on these songs and have been receiving some very generous compliments in recent days from the audience. The other thing I am always asked is if my light mounted to my guitar that I use to activate/manipulate my theremin is a "chaos pad"...which it surely is not. (After all, that sounds expensive- which means I would not have one.)
The rest of the night was spent reminding ourselves again how old we are as I figured out that I had played with the bass player from Russian Circles many years ago when he was in Botch. Another guy came in and he was once in Thunderbirds are Now. Another guy came in and he was in Frotus. We all had stories for each other though most of those guys are now fathers and have real jobs. I just have a pathetic half-beard and a foul stench.
I did get to ask ol' boy from Frotus if they got the name from a Monkees episode in which there was "the frotus room", which was also a reference to a small room where the Monkees hung out and smoked pot when they weren't needed on camera. He was stunned that I knew this and said that I was one of maybe three people EVER who had asked. He also said that he once took a piss at a urinal next to The Nez. Wow.
We stayed with a guy named Ross who was AWESOME to us. I slept well on a very comfortable couch. I have had two or three dreams about Todd Cook getting a haircut and being clean shaven. Frightening.
We got up this morning and thanked Ross. He gave us each a CD of his band which has the most awesome fold-out art of any album EVER. I promise.
On our way out of D.C. we saw a Whole Foods where we spent a long time utilizing the clean facilities and eating. This made us feel a lot better about life in general. I bought macaroons to share with everybody. I am still full many hours later.
We talked to Evan earlier and the Young Widows van is sick. He is going to have to pay $500 to get it up and running. I hope they make it here on-time.
Here in Philly the weather is cool. Not bad though. It's an early show and, as always, I feel a bit of anxiety about how we will be received by the younger crowd. We shall see.
Thursday, December 3, 2009
#3 New York show, Boston/Cambridge, post-show
(A few hours south of Boston)
I am typing softly amongst a choir of snores. As Neal mentioned yesterday, it's a peculiar sound when you sleep in the middle as there is a strange, stereo-like rhythm to it.
The day before yesterday was New York City. The drive in was not as difficult as we had anticipated and Corey did awesome, despite his notorious "issue" with driving in the big city. We passed it up once but eventually parked in front of the Bowery Ballroom.
It was a gorgeous venue. As I walked in I heard what had to be the most cliche New York accents EVER yelling "Look at dis bitch that Tiger Woods is bangin'! Check out those tits!!!".......and I immediately became concerned about the sound situation for the evening.
We loaded in kinda' early. Young Widows and Russian Circles arrived so I went for a walk while they soundchecked. I was very near where I was only last year when I played CMJ with People Noise so I knew the area a bit.
Strangely, we Corey and I were walking down the street when a girl began to stare at him before they both realized they knew each other. Weird. Corey expressed his surprise- but his friend said something obvious: "Well, this isn't a big place- there's just a whole lot of it."
We soundchecked and the soundmen turned out to be very cool. They did a great job. We mounted our projector in the back and figured that the stage would be too far away for it to do much but it turned out to do just fine. The little projector that could.
We stayed in the backstage area until showtime. It was really nice and we had a great time visiting with the other guys and some of the friends they brought in. Dom introduced me to his friends Zach (turned out to be an awesome awesome guy) and assorted others.
Showtime came and the place began to fill up as we got started. It sounded great and we had an awesome, awesome time. Wow.
After the set there were a lot of younger people up front saying kind things about my guitar playing and asking a lot of questions. I showed them some of the pedals I used but mainly talked. I visited for a long time with a young girl from Arizona who had relocated to the New York area to play music. It was cool to hear somebody so young talk who had such sincere ambitions and such awesome taste in music. A(ll too often I find myself thinking that kids are more stupid than myself and that bums me out a lot.)
Young Widows BROUGHT IT. It was the best set I had seem them play. Amazing. I shot some video that I will post and link here shortly.
I visited with more people that the Phantoms knew and they were all great. I met Lisa, who I recalled from her days of working at the Red Lounge in Louisville. She was putting us up for the night so we were all very grateful. She is one of those wonderful people that it takes little more than an introduction and she is immediately your best friend.
Dave Cook began to talk to me and said some very, VERY nice things about my guitar playing. I had never really gotten the chance nor lent the time to get to know Dave so that was overdue.
And most of us drank a bit much. Not terribly but it kept the evening very fun. I'm not advocating that but I am telling you that we had a lotta' goddamn fun. Heh.
After the show we piled into the van with Lisa, Zach, Evan, and a young lady that I didn't get ta chance to talk to named Alyssa, and we headed to Lisa's. From there we walked to the new Knitting Factory which is awesome. No one was there so I got to nerd out and scope out the place. It was cool to see posters for the upcoming For Carnation show and see Chris Wunderlich's face on 'em.
We took a cab back to Lisa's and populated her living room with sleeping bags. We couldn't stop laughing. It was nearly 4am as we all were in the dark, in sleeping bags, laughing like idiots and the dumbest shit. I was sore the nest day from laughing so hard.
As per usual, I was the first to wake up the following day (yesterday). Lisa got up shortly thereafter and we walked to a nearby coffee shop. We had a good visit and talked about the band, about Tony's passing, the pros and cons of Louisville vs. NY living, and on and on. Time and time again I am reminded of how awesome tour is for the very reason of meeting such people.
We packed and said our goodbyes to Lisa. She gave me the power adapter to her old Dell which has empowered me to document all this goofy shit.
I took pictures outside her building where they filmed scenes in the remake of "Alfie" (not sure if I'll ever actually watch it) and other assorted films. It's a great Brooklyn street.
We drove to Boston which wasn't terribly far. Navigating our way to Cambridge and the Middle East got a little hairy but Neal aka "Keith" did a great job as did his counterpart Corey. Dom and I ain't too good at that shit.
We arrived at the Middle East. It was a little cold in there and I was starving. I was exhausted to the point that I was concerned about how well I might play. We soundchecked and the soundman was awesome. We started talking about Nick Lowe which led to Jim Ford to Rockpile to Elvis Costello to Dan Penn to Frank Black (whose record "Honeycomb" is criminally overlooked and is a soulful, country/folk gem), and on and on.
There was an incredible record store nearby but I was so tired that I couldn't think straight as to what I wanted to buy. I saw so many things I wanted but ended up just getting an old vinyl copy of "Heroes" as I didn't have it on LP.
After that we collected on our free food there which was fantastic. There was more than I could eat. I had to walk around the block before we played. The food helped my energy level though.
We took the stage and, as soon as I turned on my rig, nothing happened. I spent about five minutes trying to isolate the problem and it turned out that it was something with the Mesa amp. I bypassed it and we were fine though I was probably killing the audience with volume as I adjusted. We played a pretty good set for the 16+ crowd though my own personal vibe never recovered from the delay at the beginning.
I laid down after that as I was spent. It began to rain. There were a lot of fights going on, people being ejected from the show, and ambulances and stretchers about. Weird place.
Andy of The Web came to our show and was an awesome/sweet guy. I was able to tell him that The Web is my favorite Louisville band ever. Boo-yah.
Show ended and we did our best to get on the road ASAP. The next show is at DC9 in Washington D.C. and that is a long-ass drive from Boston.
I am typing softly amongst a choir of snores. As Neal mentioned yesterday, it's a peculiar sound when you sleep in the middle as there is a strange, stereo-like rhythm to it.
The day before yesterday was New York City. The drive in was not as difficult as we had anticipated and Corey did awesome, despite his notorious "issue" with driving in the big city. We passed it up once but eventually parked in front of the Bowery Ballroom.
It was a gorgeous venue. As I walked in I heard what had to be the most cliche New York accents EVER yelling "Look at dis bitch that Tiger Woods is bangin'! Check out those tits!!!".......and I immediately became concerned about the sound situation for the evening.
We loaded in kinda' early. Young Widows and Russian Circles arrived so I went for a walk while they soundchecked. I was very near where I was only last year when I played CMJ with People Noise so I knew the area a bit.
Strangely, we Corey and I were walking down the street when a girl began to stare at him before they both realized they knew each other. Weird. Corey expressed his surprise- but his friend said something obvious: "Well, this isn't a big place- there's just a whole lot of it."
We soundchecked and the soundmen turned out to be very cool. They did a great job. We mounted our projector in the back and figured that the stage would be too far away for it to do much but it turned out to do just fine. The little projector that could.
We stayed in the backstage area until showtime. It was really nice and we had a great time visiting with the other guys and some of the friends they brought in. Dom introduced me to his friends Zach (turned out to be an awesome awesome guy) and assorted others.
Showtime came and the place began to fill up as we got started. It sounded great and we had an awesome, awesome time. Wow.
After the set there were a lot of younger people up front saying kind things about my guitar playing and asking a lot of questions. I showed them some of the pedals I used but mainly talked. I visited for a long time with a young girl from Arizona who had relocated to the New York area to play music. It was cool to hear somebody so young talk who had such sincere ambitions and such awesome taste in music. A(ll too often I find myself thinking that kids are more stupid than myself and that bums me out a lot.)
Young Widows BROUGHT IT. It was the best set I had seem them play. Amazing. I shot some video that I will post and link here shortly.
I visited with more people that the Phantoms knew and they were all great. I met Lisa, who I recalled from her days of working at the Red Lounge in Louisville. She was putting us up for the night so we were all very grateful. She is one of those wonderful people that it takes little more than an introduction and she is immediately your best friend.
Dave Cook began to talk to me and said some very, VERY nice things about my guitar playing. I had never really gotten the chance nor lent the time to get to know Dave so that was overdue.
And most of us drank a bit much. Not terribly but it kept the evening very fun. I'm not advocating that but I am telling you that we had a lotta' goddamn fun. Heh.
After the show we piled into the van with Lisa, Zach, Evan, and a young lady that I didn't get ta chance to talk to named Alyssa, and we headed to Lisa's. From there we walked to the new Knitting Factory which is awesome. No one was there so I got to nerd out and scope out the place. It was cool to see posters for the upcoming For Carnation show and see Chris Wunderlich's face on 'em.
We took a cab back to Lisa's and populated her living room with sleeping bags. We couldn't stop laughing. It was nearly 4am as we all were in the dark, in sleeping bags, laughing like idiots and the dumbest shit. I was sore the nest day from laughing so hard.
As per usual, I was the first to wake up the following day (yesterday). Lisa got up shortly thereafter and we walked to a nearby coffee shop. We had a good visit and talked about the band, about Tony's passing, the pros and cons of Louisville vs. NY living, and on and on. Time and time again I am reminded of how awesome tour is for the very reason of meeting such people.
We packed and said our goodbyes to Lisa. She gave me the power adapter to her old Dell which has empowered me to document all this goofy shit.
I took pictures outside her building where they filmed scenes in the remake of "Alfie" (not sure if I'll ever actually watch it) and other assorted films. It's a great Brooklyn street.
We drove to Boston which wasn't terribly far. Navigating our way to Cambridge and the Middle East got a little hairy but Neal aka "Keith" did a great job as did his counterpart Corey. Dom and I ain't too good at that shit.
We arrived at the Middle East. It was a little cold in there and I was starving. I was exhausted to the point that I was concerned about how well I might play. We soundchecked and the soundman was awesome. We started talking about Nick Lowe which led to Jim Ford to Rockpile to Elvis Costello to Dan Penn to Frank Black (whose record "Honeycomb" is criminally overlooked and is a soulful, country/folk gem), and on and on.
There was an incredible record store nearby but I was so tired that I couldn't think straight as to what I wanted to buy. I saw so many things I wanted but ended up just getting an old vinyl copy of "Heroes" as I didn't have it on LP.
After that we collected on our free food there which was fantastic. There was more than I could eat. I had to walk around the block before we played. The food helped my energy level though.
We took the stage and, as soon as I turned on my rig, nothing happened. I spent about five minutes trying to isolate the problem and it turned out that it was something with the Mesa amp. I bypassed it and we were fine though I was probably killing the audience with volume as I adjusted. We played a pretty good set for the 16+ crowd though my own personal vibe never recovered from the delay at the beginning.
I laid down after that as I was spent. It began to rain. There were a lot of fights going on, people being ejected from the show, and ambulances and stretchers about. Weird place.
Andy of The Web came to our show and was an awesome/sweet guy. I was able to tell him that The Web is my favorite Louisville band ever. Boo-yah.
Show ended and we did our best to get on the road ASAP. The next show is at DC9 in Washington D.C. and that is a long-ass drive from Boston.
#2 Niagara Falls, Post crazy Albany night, Buffalo show
11.29.09
This morning finds us at a Howard Johnson motel near Niagra Falls. The good folks in Young Widows booked us in on Priceline.com, and we're spending less on it then we did for the shithole outside of Detroit. No paranormal activities with temperature control here.
The Phantoms all walked down for Mexican food to find that Buffalo, New York had been taken over my bored white people with fake afro wigs, platform shoes, and glittery trousers. They were everywhere. It was a very, VERY odd sight. We walked a number of blocks and couldn't even detect where they might all be reporting to.
We ate at the Mexican place and it was pretty good. It was Q-Doba style where they basically build what you tell them to but it was better. Shrimps always make it better.
We got back to the venue and it was filling in nicely. Coming in the main entrance showed me again how neat the space was. I was in my usual attire which is pretty much an assembly of Salvation Army items that somewhat have the coherency of a suit (provided that the lighting is dim) so I drew some odd looks. Maybe kiddies would like me better if I wore more t-shirts?
Dom's shoes were damp so I lent him my black work shoes and I wore my bight-ass red dress shoes that never fail to generate a number of conversations, compliments, and comments.
Backstage we mentioned the animated gangs of wannabe disco lame-asses that were populating the city. One of the girls who worked at the Soundlab told us that the city happened to be the site of the world's largest disco. Ahh. Now that's competition.
I was very proud of our set. The crowd, again, was young and wasn't entirely sure how to respond but there was an enthusiastic sect that grew as the set progressed. We kept a few areas of the set loose/open-ended and it was at times like that that I felt that we really are developing a silent rapport, musically, and that we are communicating like a band that has played together a lot longer than we have.
I had one goof that embarrassed me a bit: during the intro to "Monoliths" I have taken to plugging in the theremin, using the light that is mounted on my guitar and the projections to manipulate the sound (it's a hand-built theremin with two optical sensors to control it). The noise was pretty awesome but, when I plugged my guitar back in to finish the song I accidentally flipped the rhythm switch on the Jazzmaster (a classic problem for people wh play them but one that has rarely affected me) and I had about 20% of my volume. I think this confused Dom but he had the good sense to start singing and work with it as I slowly raised my volume as we went which provided a pretty cool effect. I dug it.
The show finished and, as had been the case all night, the Soundlab folks were awesome, trying to give us water, beer, and a place to stay. We got out of there pretty late and headed this way.
Corey check in and, as is the case with third party booking groups- like Priceline, Expedia, and the likes- you're not guaranteed the room type you book. It was 3am and the guy still wouldn't grant a double. What a douche. I work in a hotel so I know that you have to be a king ace prick to not do that at such an hour.
I slept well on the floor but I am a seasoned veteran at it.
We have a day off today. The only plan is for Dom to get some dry shoes and to see the Falls with Young Widows. There is a cool-ass Native American museum that I hope we can hit up.
Donuts across the street....................
1.) I don't have time to write explicitly about the following:
A toll booth worker who looked just like the devil-ish character in "Clash of the Titans" asking Corey about traffic running the other direction. Corey doesn't quite process it but says "I dunno. I was really paying attention."
Ol' boy gets his jerry curl in a fit and says "I'm just tryin' to make conversation here!!!" in the most cliche New York accent ever. Awesome.
2.) Crazy fucking night outside of Albany, New York as we stopped for the night in a small town and were accosted by the crazy owner. He was a fan of early Genesis, Devo, and Talking Heads. We gave him records, he gave us bourbon. Then the jack-ass bartender tried to charge us $60. Corey had to talk the guy down and the owner apologized. Situation averted.
The night ended with bible readings.
This morning finds us at a Howard Johnson motel near Niagra Falls. The good folks in Young Widows booked us in on Priceline.com, and we're spending less on it then we did for the shithole outside of Detroit. No paranormal activities with temperature control here.
The Phantoms all walked down for Mexican food to find that Buffalo, New York had been taken over my bored white people with fake afro wigs, platform shoes, and glittery trousers. They were everywhere. It was a very, VERY odd sight. We walked a number of blocks and couldn't even detect where they might all be reporting to.
We ate at the Mexican place and it was pretty good. It was Q-Doba style where they basically build what you tell them to but it was better. Shrimps always make it better.
We got back to the venue and it was filling in nicely. Coming in the main entrance showed me again how neat the space was. I was in my usual attire which is pretty much an assembly of Salvation Army items that somewhat have the coherency of a suit (provided that the lighting is dim) so I drew some odd looks. Maybe kiddies would like me better if I wore more t-shirts?
Dom's shoes were damp so I lent him my black work shoes and I wore my bight-ass red dress shoes that never fail to generate a number of conversations, compliments, and comments.
Backstage we mentioned the animated gangs of wannabe disco lame-asses that were populating the city. One of the girls who worked at the Soundlab told us that the city happened to be the site of the world's largest disco. Ahh. Now that's competition.
I was very proud of our set. The crowd, again, was young and wasn't entirely sure how to respond but there was an enthusiastic sect that grew as the set progressed. We kept a few areas of the set loose/open-ended and it was at times like that that I felt that we really are developing a silent rapport, musically, and that we are communicating like a band that has played together a lot longer than we have.
I had one goof that embarrassed me a bit: during the intro to "Monoliths" I have taken to plugging in the theremin, using the light that is mounted on my guitar and the projections to manipulate the sound (it's a hand-built theremin with two optical sensors to control it). The noise was pretty awesome but, when I plugged my guitar back in to finish the song I accidentally flipped the rhythm switch on the Jazzmaster (a classic problem for people wh play them but one that has rarely affected me) and I had about 20% of my volume. I think this confused Dom but he had the good sense to start singing and work with it as I slowly raised my volume as we went which provided a pretty cool effect. I dug it.
The show finished and, as had been the case all night, the Soundlab folks were awesome, trying to give us water, beer, and a place to stay. We got out of there pretty late and headed this way.
Corey check in and, as is the case with third party booking groups- like Priceline, Expedia, and the likes- you're not guaranteed the room type you book. It was 3am and the guy still wouldn't grant a double. What a douche. I work in a hotel so I know that you have to be a king ace prick to not do that at such an hour.
I slept well on the floor but I am a seasoned veteran at it.
We have a day off today. The only plan is for Dom to get some dry shoes and to see the Falls with Young Widows. There is a cool-ass Native American museum that I hope we can hit up.
Donuts across the street....................
1.) I don't have time to write explicitly about the following:
A toll booth worker who looked just like the devil-ish character in "Clash of the Titans" asking Corey about traffic running the other direction. Corey doesn't quite process it but says "I dunno. I was really paying attention."
Ol' boy gets his jerry curl in a fit and says "I'm just tryin' to make conversation here!!!" in the most cliche New York accent ever. Awesome.
2.) Crazy fucking night outside of Albany, New York as we stopped for the night in a small town and were accosted by the crazy owner. He was a fan of early Genesis, Devo, and Talking Heads. We gave him records, he gave us bourbon. Then the jack-ass bartender tried to charge us $60. Corey had to talk the guy down and the owner apologized. Situation averted.
The night ended with bible readings.
#1 Kick-off, Detroit, arrival in Buffalo
It's been difficult to find a place to get free wifi connectivity- so it's not completely intentional that my entry on the first tour date comes so late.
The drive out of Louisville to Detroit went fine. We had a lot of fun with the usual nerdy music shit- listening to lots of great music and participating in the customary goofing around. I am very lucky to be able to play in this band with these people.
We arrived at the venue, The Magic Stick, a little late. We loaded in which involved the climbing/carrying the entire operation up two flights of stars. Needless to say, we were able to work off Thankgiving dinner(s) right away...
Dom had said that this was location of Houdini's final performance. I knew that it was in Detroit but I wasn't convinced that The Magic Stick was the place. I did a little research and learned that it was a theater that had moved around a few times and there seemed to be some debate about where it was when Houdini passed. Oh well. I decided to operate under that assumption and see what that sorta' twisted mojo might do for us. Heh.
We attempted to befriend the soundman right away but he wasn't the friendliest creature. Nor was he very interested/involved in anything, really. He seemed genrally annoyed by the live music experience which leaves one to question his choice of vocation. (This, of course, is not uncommon when it comes to soundmen.) We checked, tuning out the semi-regular/passive-aggressive shitty comment and enjoying the outwardly stupid ones like "Y'all's set-up is weeeird."
(Man, I am so sorry that you can't mix the Sublime Tribute band tonight- but can you at least do your job to SOMEBODY'S satisfaction?")
Young Widows arrived. It's always good to see those folks though I've only known Evan, really. They're all great and it's a pleasure and an honor to share the stage with them. We also met Russian Circles and they proved to be equally great folks. Looks like we have great company for the next two weeks.
The young lady working the door, Ramona, was a real sweetheart. She orientated us on how the night would proceed and gave us meal tickets.
It was a fascinating place: a bowling alley and two restaurants downstairs and the venue upstairs. There were a lot of really young people present.
So, set time came and we asked lil' buddy to start our video/visuals...and nothing. We wait and it never comes. We waited, bathing in some bright-ass purple light but our DVD never started. So we had to get going.
The mix was odd and difficult but that coulda' been more of a product of my still learning how I fit into the Phantom Family Halo mix. Neal said it sounded entirely different for him than it did at soundcheck. Oh well.
The kids huddled the front of the stage and seemed to enjoy it though I know we were an odd experience for them. I had prepared myself for silence after songs but we got a decent response but they seemed confused, mostly.
What do you do? Kids might just not get it.
Young Widows and Russian Circles both put on powerful sets. It made me feel a little better as both bands also had very "subdued" audiences. Towards the end of the show there was some activity up front for Russian Circles as one redneck-ish character was pushing people and another spirited lad did some crowd-surfing. It was quite silly.
We ate and loaded out. Of course, the trip down those stars was much easier. We are kinda' old.
We looked for a motel for a bit before deciding on a Knight's Inn outside of town. We got into the placed and it was FRIGID. When we turned on the heater it seemed to give a slightly warm "breath" that went about 6 inches above the unit. You could see your breath in the place.
Neal wanted to wash his hands in some hot water and didn't have any luck acquiring any. Damn.
We were all mummified in our sleeping bags and watched a very odd, old Mexican movie. This has provided us all with comic material ever since. Sleep eventually came...
We all woke up to find that the room had warmed A LOT. It was hotter than hell. We were all sweat-soaked. What the hell???
It was a beautiful morning and I found my way to the Denny's next door for breakfast and the hopes of getting online. I asked about wifi connectivity and the girl said "We don't have that any more."
Really? Had they moved beyond the internet?
Weather was great today for the drive. We had to follow the bottom of the great lake to get to Buffalo. Canada would provide a shorter route but it would also involve a thorough search of the vehicle and probably would keep us too long.
Dom and I stopped at a Starbucks where I got online long enough to get precise directions to the Soundlab. We had been lucky to exit where we did as we were able to get to the venue in about 15 minutes.
The Soundlab is a neat place and has some nice folks running it. Very artist friendly. It's an old building, mostly underground. We loaded down and Corey is currently working on his bass cabinet as the jack is...well...jacked. Someone has lent him a soldering iron.
Russian Circles are checking now. Dom's shoes got wet so he is wearing a pair of mine. There is talk of Mexican food which pleases me immensely.
They have a projector mounted here so no issue with us mounting ours.
News keeps getting better...................
The drive out of Louisville to Detroit went fine. We had a lot of fun with the usual nerdy music shit- listening to lots of great music and participating in the customary goofing around. I am very lucky to be able to play in this band with these people.
We arrived at the venue, The Magic Stick, a little late. We loaded in which involved the climbing/carrying the entire operation up two flights of stars. Needless to say, we were able to work off Thankgiving dinner(s) right away...
Dom had said that this was location of Houdini's final performance. I knew that it was in Detroit but I wasn't convinced that The Magic Stick was the place. I did a little research and learned that it was a theater that had moved around a few times and there seemed to be some debate about where it was when Houdini passed. Oh well. I decided to operate under that assumption and see what that sorta' twisted mojo might do for us. Heh.
We attempted to befriend the soundman right away but he wasn't the friendliest creature. Nor was he very interested/involved in anything, really. He seemed genrally annoyed by the live music experience which leaves one to question his choice of vocation. (This, of course, is not uncommon when it comes to soundmen.) We checked, tuning out the semi-regular/passive-aggressive shitty comment and enjoying the outwardly stupid ones like "Y'all's set-up is weeeird."
(Man, I am so sorry that you can't mix the Sublime Tribute band tonight- but can you at least do your job to SOMEBODY'S satisfaction?")
Young Widows arrived. It's always good to see those folks though I've only known Evan, really. They're all great and it's a pleasure and an honor to share the stage with them. We also met Russian Circles and they proved to be equally great folks. Looks like we have great company for the next two weeks.
The young lady working the door, Ramona, was a real sweetheart. She orientated us on how the night would proceed and gave us meal tickets.
It was a fascinating place: a bowling alley and two restaurants downstairs and the venue upstairs. There were a lot of really young people present.
So, set time came and we asked lil' buddy to start our video/visuals...and nothing. We wait and it never comes. We waited, bathing in some bright-ass purple light but our DVD never started. So we had to get going.
The mix was odd and difficult but that coulda' been more of a product of my still learning how I fit into the Phantom Family Halo mix. Neal said it sounded entirely different for him than it did at soundcheck. Oh well.
The kids huddled the front of the stage and seemed to enjoy it though I know we were an odd experience for them. I had prepared myself for silence after songs but we got a decent response but they seemed confused, mostly.
What do you do? Kids might just not get it.
Young Widows and Russian Circles both put on powerful sets. It made me feel a little better as both bands also had very "subdued" audiences. Towards the end of the show there was some activity up front for Russian Circles as one redneck-ish character was pushing people and another spirited lad did some crowd-surfing. It was quite silly.
We ate and loaded out. Of course, the trip down those stars was much easier. We are kinda' old.
We looked for a motel for a bit before deciding on a Knight's Inn outside of town. We got into the placed and it was FRIGID. When we turned on the heater it seemed to give a slightly warm "breath" that went about 6 inches above the unit. You could see your breath in the place.
Neal wanted to wash his hands in some hot water and didn't have any luck acquiring any. Damn.
We were all mummified in our sleeping bags and watched a very odd, old Mexican movie. This has provided us all with comic material ever since. Sleep eventually came...
We all woke up to find that the room had warmed A LOT. It was hotter than hell. We were all sweat-soaked. What the hell???
It was a beautiful morning and I found my way to the Denny's next door for breakfast and the hopes of getting online. I asked about wifi connectivity and the girl said "We don't have that any more."
Really? Had they moved beyond the internet?
Weather was great today for the drive. We had to follow the bottom of the great lake to get to Buffalo. Canada would provide a shorter route but it would also involve a thorough search of the vehicle and probably would keep us too long.
Dom and I stopped at a Starbucks where I got online long enough to get precise directions to the Soundlab. We had been lucky to exit where we did as we were able to get to the venue in about 15 minutes.
The Soundlab is a neat place and has some nice folks running it. Very artist friendly. It's an old building, mostly underground. We loaded down and Corey is currently working on his bass cabinet as the jack is...well...jacked. Someone has lent him a soldering iron.
Russian Circles are checking now. Dom's shoes got wet so he is wearing a pair of mine. There is talk of Mexican food which pleases me immensely.
They have a projector mounted here so no issue with us mounting ours.
News keeps getting better...................
Monday, November 23, 2009
Part Of The Family Now
I am currently at work and very scatterbrain. I apologize in advance. Pretty much every blog I write is at work so that explains why it's done so terribly. (Maybe once I'm on the road my writing will get better, eh?)
I have been practicing with the Phantoms for about a month now. It's been a lot of fun and came together really well and really fast- not to say that we don't sometimes sound like we've only been playing together for a month...
It's been four or so years now since I first heard Phantom Family Halo demos on Myspace. Matt (of Lucky Pineapple) and I messaged Dom and told him that we really liked the songs and the recordings themselves. I believe we even tried to talk him into recording Lucky Pineapple on his 8-track.
Since then Phantom Family Halo has gone on to become one of Louisville's hardest working and most acclaimed bands, playing shows and touring with the likes of Slint, Hawkwind, and Acid Mothers Temple, and receiving glowing reviews including a rather notorious one from Julian Cope.
SOOOOOOO.......I guess what I am getting at there is I am very proud and honored to be asked to come onboard. The timing is great as Matt's baby is due at the beginning of December which Lucky Pineapple is using as an opportunity to lay back a bit, write, and record.
The past few months have been some of the most memorable, for good and for ill, of my life.
Lucky Pineapple's "The Bubble Has Burst in Sky City" was re-released and we had/have been playing a lot of shows, we made a video, and doing our best to make the most of these amazing opportunities that keep presenting themselves to this weird, weird band.
A few months ago I joined an Alice Cooper tribute band called Black Juju: The Ultimate Alice Cooper Group Tribute Band with Dom, Tony, Christian, and Chad...a pretty serious outfit when it comes to this stuff. It was so, SO much fun. Sadly, we were only able to play two shows before Tony passed away. I had been asked to play with Phantom Family Halo right before then so everybody's plans for the future froze while we figured out how to process such a tragedy and move forward
When it was time to get rolling Dom called and said that he had recruited Neal to play keyboards. I thought about it for about half a second and decided that it was somebody I didn't know. He also said that we would be trying out drummers. Corey is the Phantom bass player and has always been a consistant member of the band PLUS he's somebody I've always liked a lot. So we were set.
I showed up to find that Neal was my good friend and former co-worker at Wild and Woolly Video, Neal Argebright (I've never been able to spell that boy's name right and I don't plan to today). Neal and I have talked about playing together for years because were share so many of the same interests but have never gotten it together. I was so happy to see that guy in the band.
We auditioned a few drummers but it wasn't feeling quite right. The dudes who tried out were great but it could have simply been the short amount of time available that made it seem like Dom should go back to singing/drumming in the original PFH-stand'n'play fashion. Everybody else in the band confessed that that set-up had been a collective favorite incarnation of the band. So it was on.
It really came together well and quick. No disrespect to past or current bandmates of mine but I don't think I've ever played with folks where everybody in the room shared so much in common when it came to musical interests, concepts, and such. It's one thing to share an affection for a sound or a style but it's rare and special to be able to like a lot of different things and be able to appreciate it on a cultural level, on a creative level...hell, just for fun sometimes. I get the impression that everybody in the room really, really loves music and wants to do it. That's a great thing to be surrounded by and amongst. I, myself, talk shit about things I don't like musically for fun mostly but, in the end, I just love music. The only things that I really don't like is when there isn't a trace of bravery, integrity, or anything remotely original. I'm not too into music that is exclusively "novel"- which is a word that is rather elastic for me. But, in the end, I don't really care- I don't lose any sleep. Goofy shit like that doesn't ever really have a legacy.
Off track. Anyways, the Phantoms are great guys and a real pleasure to play with. Such a good time.
We played our first show last Thursday in Lexington, Kentucky, at Al's Bar. I had played Al's on the most recent Superbowl Sunday to two people and staff- and it was still great. So I was happy to return to Al's.
We were treated well with great food and drinks. We were sharing the bill with the Invaders so we were in good company.
Leading up to the show we got help from the good folks at Al's in mounting our projector. Then we waited.
The first band was a local named CROSS. Most of the band seemed very young. The singer was a very tall, lanky fellow who came around and introduced himself. Sweet guy.
They began and it was hard to decipher, really. I didn't hate it. It was sorta' like a gothic stoner rock with a Flipper-esque looseness....and why did I think of The Doors? Anyways, it seemed like everybody in the room went though the same transition I did. It seemed to get better and better. By the end I really, really dug 'em. Very original and refreshing.
We flipped a coin and Phantom Family Halo was to be next. We set up and immediately we have a problem with Neal's effects line which simply isn't working. Poor guy worked and worked and nothing was happening. He was sweating bullets and I really had no idea how I could help. We lucked out and Joe the Invader had the daisy chain we needed. (Thanks, Joe.)
We started with our take on Brian Eno's "Ascent"- a song that we have taken a LOT of liberties with. It works well as an introduction and a good way for me to check volumes. Following a short version of that, Dom rolls us into Alice Cooper's "Reflected". The idea behind this combo is both a way of introducing this incarnation of Phantom Family Halo but also a tribute to Tony.
Past that the set went reasonably well. Dom's mic stand kept falling on me and his cymbal would occasionally connect with my spine, making for an interesting sensation. However, I am accustomed to playing in a band with 9 people- this is all fine and well and manageable after five years of 6 or more people in a band.
So, our first set went well. It was fun and well received. I think we can and will do better though.
Our next show is here in Louisville on Wednesday, Nov. 25th...two days before we leave on tour(!)........so there's a lot of excitement right now.
11/20 Louisville, KY @ Z-Bar *
11/27 Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick
11/28 Buffalo, NY @ Soundlab
11/30 Milford, CT @ Daniel Street
12/1 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
12/2 Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
12/3 Washington DC @ DC9
12/4 Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church
12/5 Richmond, VA @ Camel Club
12/7 Montreal, QC Canada @ Il Matore
12/8 Toronto, ON Canada @ Lee’s Place
12/9 Kalamazoo, MI @ The Strut
12/10 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
12/11 Louisville, KY @ Skull Alley
12/12 Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
All shows w/ Young Widows and Russian Circles except for * and one more New York, NY show that I haven’t received the details on just yet.
I have been practicing with the Phantoms for about a month now. It's been a lot of fun and came together really well and really fast- not to say that we don't sometimes sound like we've only been playing together for a month...
It's been four or so years now since I first heard Phantom Family Halo demos on Myspace. Matt (of Lucky Pineapple) and I messaged Dom and told him that we really liked the songs and the recordings themselves. I believe we even tried to talk him into recording Lucky Pineapple on his 8-track.
Since then Phantom Family Halo has gone on to become one of Louisville's hardest working and most acclaimed bands, playing shows and touring with the likes of Slint, Hawkwind, and Acid Mothers Temple, and receiving glowing reviews including a rather notorious one from Julian Cope.
SOOOOOOO.......I guess what I am getting at there is I am very proud and honored to be asked to come onboard. The timing is great as Matt's baby is due at the beginning of December which Lucky Pineapple is using as an opportunity to lay back a bit, write, and record.
The past few months have been some of the most memorable, for good and for ill, of my life.
Lucky Pineapple's "The Bubble Has Burst in Sky City" was re-released and we had/have been playing a lot of shows, we made a video, and doing our best to make the most of these amazing opportunities that keep presenting themselves to this weird, weird band.
A few months ago I joined an Alice Cooper tribute band called Black Juju: The Ultimate Alice Cooper Group Tribute Band with Dom, Tony, Christian, and Chad...a pretty serious outfit when it comes to this stuff. It was so, SO much fun. Sadly, we were only able to play two shows before Tony passed away. I had been asked to play with Phantom Family Halo right before then so everybody's plans for the future froze while we figured out how to process such a tragedy and move forward
When it was time to get rolling Dom called and said that he had recruited Neal to play keyboards. I thought about it for about half a second and decided that it was somebody I didn't know. He also said that we would be trying out drummers. Corey is the Phantom bass player and has always been a consistant member of the band PLUS he's somebody I've always liked a lot. So we were set.
I showed up to find that Neal was my good friend and former co-worker at Wild and Woolly Video, Neal Argebright (I've never been able to spell that boy's name right and I don't plan to today). Neal and I have talked about playing together for years because were share so many of the same interests but have never gotten it together. I was so happy to see that guy in the band.
We auditioned a few drummers but it wasn't feeling quite right. The dudes who tried out were great but it could have simply been the short amount of time available that made it seem like Dom should go back to singing/drumming in the original PFH-stand'n'play fashion. Everybody else in the band confessed that that set-up had been a collective favorite incarnation of the band. So it was on.
It really came together well and quick. No disrespect to past or current bandmates of mine but I don't think I've ever played with folks where everybody in the room shared so much in common when it came to musical interests, concepts, and such. It's one thing to share an affection for a sound or a style but it's rare and special to be able to like a lot of different things and be able to appreciate it on a cultural level, on a creative level...hell, just for fun sometimes. I get the impression that everybody in the room really, really loves music and wants to do it. That's a great thing to be surrounded by and amongst. I, myself, talk shit about things I don't like musically for fun mostly but, in the end, I just love music. The only things that I really don't like is when there isn't a trace of bravery, integrity, or anything remotely original. I'm not too into music that is exclusively "novel"- which is a word that is rather elastic for me. But, in the end, I don't really care- I don't lose any sleep. Goofy shit like that doesn't ever really have a legacy.
Off track. Anyways, the Phantoms are great guys and a real pleasure to play with. Such a good time.
We played our first show last Thursday in Lexington, Kentucky, at Al's Bar. I had played Al's on the most recent Superbowl Sunday to two people and staff- and it was still great. So I was happy to return to Al's.
We were treated well with great food and drinks. We were sharing the bill with the Invaders so we were in good company.
Leading up to the show we got help from the good folks at Al's in mounting our projector. Then we waited.
The first band was a local named CROSS. Most of the band seemed very young. The singer was a very tall, lanky fellow who came around and introduced himself. Sweet guy.
They began and it was hard to decipher, really. I didn't hate it. It was sorta' like a gothic stoner rock with a Flipper-esque looseness....and why did I think of The Doors? Anyways, it seemed like everybody in the room went though the same transition I did. It seemed to get better and better. By the end I really, really dug 'em. Very original and refreshing.
We flipped a coin and Phantom Family Halo was to be next. We set up and immediately we have a problem with Neal's effects line which simply isn't working. Poor guy worked and worked and nothing was happening. He was sweating bullets and I really had no idea how I could help. We lucked out and Joe the Invader had the daisy chain we needed. (Thanks, Joe.)
We started with our take on Brian Eno's "Ascent"- a song that we have taken a LOT of liberties with. It works well as an introduction and a good way for me to check volumes. Following a short version of that, Dom rolls us into Alice Cooper's "Reflected". The idea behind this combo is both a way of introducing this incarnation of Phantom Family Halo but also a tribute to Tony.
Past that the set went reasonably well. Dom's mic stand kept falling on me and his cymbal would occasionally connect with my spine, making for an interesting sensation. However, I am accustomed to playing in a band with 9 people- this is all fine and well and manageable after five years of 6 or more people in a band.
So, our first set went well. It was fun and well received. I think we can and will do better though.
Our next show is here in Louisville on Wednesday, Nov. 25th...two days before we leave on tour(!)........so there's a lot of excitement right now.
11/20 Louisville, KY @ Z-Bar *
11/27 Detroit, MI @ Magic Stick
11/28 Buffalo, NY @ Soundlab
11/30 Milford, CT @ Daniel Street
12/1 New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom
12/2 Cambridge, MA @ Middle East
12/3 Washington DC @ DC9
12/4 Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church
12/5 Richmond, VA @ Camel Club
12/7 Montreal, QC Canada @ Il Matore
12/8 Toronto, ON Canada @ Lee’s Place
12/9 Kalamazoo, MI @ The Strut
12/10 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
12/11 Louisville, KY @ Skull Alley
12/12 Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
All shows w/ Young Widows and Russian Circles except for * and one more New York, NY show that I haven’t received the details on just yet.
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