so we got robbed today...
i figured i'd just come out and say it rather than build up suspense or anything dramatic like that...actually, mugged would be the more proper word...mugged at gunpoint...that makes it sound just that much more intense...
the good thing is that i'm still here to be typing this post...and i'm typing it on my laptop...it could have easily gone a lot differently but i don't like to think about that...i'm still processing so much of it still...it hasn't really sunk in, though...but i can't stop thinking about it...it might be good to rehash it all while my memory of it's still fresh...
so half our group stayed at our friend seth's house in kc last night...we all slept in nice and late and then got up and went to this area of town called westport or midtown or something like that to go shopping...we stopped at some pretty cool thrift stores, book stores and record shops...then we ate at this nice local deli called "the bronx"...afterwards we met up with the rest of our group and most of us went back to seth's place to kind of chill out before we decided what we were gonna do for dinner/etc...twjr's nate and ryan both stayed in town to read at a coffeshop and were coming back over later in nate's car...
so most of the group was inside the house napping and watching tv but chris and i decided to possibly go do some laundry at a laundromat...we thought we'd take nate's car to go do this so while we were waiting for he and ryan to get back we were sitting out on seth's front porch just tooling around on our laptops...we both noticed two kids walk by on the street and kind of eye us a little bit but i tried not to snap to my smalltown conclusions of what that kind of thing looks like...the kids came back by just as nate and ryan pulled up and they asked chris and i about the house (it had a for sale sign in the yard)...we didn't know anything because we obviously were from out of town so we kind of made small talk with them while ryan and nate came up on the porch as well...
once again my smalltown mind was making all kinds of snap judgments about why two black teens were trying to talk to a group of four middle-class whities and we probably should have been smarter...luckily chris and i had both packed up our laptops by the time the kids came up to the porch...i tried to be cool to them and talk to them like they were human beings and not just try to quick get out of it and avoid them like i'm prone to doing in similar situations...we told them we're in a band on tour and we're just staying here for the day...they asked where we were from in ohio and we told them...they said they knew some people from akron and so on...so when the talkative one of the two pulled a gun on me it came as a pretty big shocker...though it really shouldn't have...i guess i never thought a mugger would initiate smalltalk before he robs you...they never teach you that in school...
he told all four of us to get down on the ground and flashed what looked like some form of a semi-automatic weapon at us...it kind of looked like a fake to me but my fight or flight instinct wasn't letting me ask questions at that point...we all kind of crouched on the ground and i'm not even sure what we said...i think i might have said something like "dude why are you doing this?" but i can't remember...i'm pretty sure this was just as new to them as it was to us because he first asked for our wallets but then let us just give him our cash...instead of asking for our credit cards he asked for all our i.d.'s which didn't make a whole lot of sense...
i forked over $30, ryan and nate only had a few bucks on them but chris had $300 on him, unfortunately...the kid tried to get chris to give him his laptop but chris said "dude i'm a musician and all my music is on this...be cool man" so the kid actually let him keep it...the whole time i'm praying he doesn't ask for what's in my bag that was sitting in plain view right behind me...my laptop and ipod were all in there...i'd part with that $30 plenty of times over before i'd give up that bag...chris later said that he was appealing to whatever was left of a soul in them to not take his laptop...luckily it worked but he's obviously pretty bummed about the cash...the kid also took the keys to nate's car which was pretty dumb because they just ran off anyways...afterwards i realized i had the van keys (which was sitting just out on the street with thousands of dollars worth of gear in it) in my front pocket and my cell phone on me as well...like i said, they definitely seemed like newbies...
they said "don't be dumb and call the cops...we know who you are and where you live" and all that kind of tough talk...though that's the first thing our scared little, whiteboy butts did...we ran inside and woke everyone up because they didn't know a thing was going on out there...we called the cops and they came over right away but obviously couldn't do much...there were two big shootings in the same precinct so all their detectives and k-9's were being used for that...
so all in all the kids walked away with about $330 in cash...three ohio drivers license, one washington drivers license and the keys to a car they didn't even steal...the cops were baffled as to why they took our licenses and not our whole wallets...i'm very glad they didn't but still i don't like the fact that they know all that info about me and that i'll have to go through the hassle of getting a new license...what a pain that is...chris is also gonna have problems when he tries to fly back home w/o a valid i.d. for the airlines...luckily nate had a backup set of keys for his car so that was no big loss...
words can't describe what it's like to have a gun to your head in a moment like that...i sometimes run through scenarios like that in my mind and think how i wouldn't be scared because the mugger is just as scared and usually the gun isn't real or the mugger doesn't even know how to shoot it or something like that...it's all a load though when it actually happens...and it all happens so quick...you don't have time to run through how you could take the guy down or talk him out of it...we're just lucky that more wasn't taken from us because it very easily could have been...
if nothing else it gives us all a good story to tell for this tour...hah...so far we've witnessed a stabbing...had our trailer break down...and got mugged...
the things we do for rock 'n roll...
Thursday, June 28, 2007
kansas city, mo
this was our third time as a band (but only my 2nd time) playing kansas city...it's the home of the winston jazz routine and our's label, the record machine...so they book some really good shows for us here...the place we played at was this cool bar/venue we've played at each time we've been here called "the record bar"...it's always a fun place to play because the sound is top notch there and they also know how to treat band's right with complimentary food and drinks...
we didn't have a local opener which probably hurt the turnout somewhat but the show still drew a good bit of people...i'd say more so than when we opened there the last time w/ the starlight mints and minus story...they were both big draws but unfortunately most of those people they drew didn't show up for our 8pm "early" set...this time around the show started at 10pm which was kinda crazy late for a weekday show but there was only us 3 bands and they had an early show at the venue that went from like 7-9pm...discover america went on first because chris wasn't feeling that great and didn't want to play last...we then played second and the winston jazz routine brought up the rear...
after the show we split off into two groups because we had two places to stay at...one house was that of a guy named aaron who lives in overland park so coby, ashten, derek, nate phillips & caleb all went there to stay....the rest of us stayed at a guy named seth's house...it was the same place that state bird played a house show at the last time we were in kansas city...it's kind of community type house because alot of people hang out there from time to time...chris and i got to stay in the only air-conditioned room in the house which oddly enough was in the attic...
the next day was going to be our first day off on the tour...we were supposed to play a show in springfield, mo which actually sounded like it was going to be very cool but apparently the promoter thought the show was july 27th and not june 27th so he didn't have time to promote it at all...we were all pretty bummed about it but glad to have the extra day to rest up before cornerstone...
and then there was our off day...
p.s- i finally am on a steady, non-stolen internet connection so i've uploaded a ton of photo's from the last few shows so be sure to go check them out via the "tour photo's" link to the right...
we didn't have a local opener which probably hurt the turnout somewhat but the show still drew a good bit of people...i'd say more so than when we opened there the last time w/ the starlight mints and minus story...they were both big draws but unfortunately most of those people they drew didn't show up for our 8pm "early" set...this time around the show started at 10pm which was kinda crazy late for a weekday show but there was only us 3 bands and they had an early show at the venue that went from like 7-9pm...discover america went on first because chris wasn't feeling that great and didn't want to play last...we then played second and the winston jazz routine brought up the rear...
after the show we split off into two groups because we had two places to stay at...one house was that of a guy named aaron who lives in overland park so coby, ashten, derek, nate phillips & caleb all went there to stay....the rest of us stayed at a guy named seth's house...it was the same place that state bird played a house show at the last time we were in kansas city...it's kind of community type house because alot of people hang out there from time to time...chris and i got to stay in the only air-conditioned room in the house which oddly enough was in the attic...
the next day was going to be our first day off on the tour...we were supposed to play a show in springfield, mo which actually sounded like it was going to be very cool but apparently the promoter thought the show was july 27th and not june 27th so he didn't have time to promote it at all...we were all pretty bummed about it but glad to have the extra day to rest up before cornerstone...
and then there was our off day...
p.s- i finally am on a steady, non-stolen internet connection so i've uploaded a ton of photo's from the last few shows so be sure to go check them out via the "tour photo's" link to the right...
oklahoma city, ok
so this is gonna be weird talking about the show two days ago and not blogging directly about the events that transpired today in kc...but i guess that'll build anticipation for the entry about today...
so we played okc (as the locals call it) on our last tour in the spring and did so with a pretty great local band called "the non"...they're an instrumental group and are young but incredibly talented...we made sure to get a show again with them this time around and they did not disappoint...you all should definitely check them out (if i haven't gushed about them to you already) and get their new cd...i believe it's available off their myspace: www.myspace.com/thenon ...we also are also working on getting a show together with them up in ohio so stay tuned for that...
the venue we played at was a place called "convergence" and it's basically a back room in a department store...it's cooler than it sounds, though...the non opened up the show (though they very well could have headlined) and brought their nice, big local following along with them...most everyone stuck around even though there were 4 bands on the bill and the show didn't start til 9pm...twjr played after the non, then state bird and discover america was last...it was a good time but there were a few technical snafu's that didn't get ironed out til discover america's set but all in all the show was a success...
rob (who runs convergence) was putting us up at his place once again but on the way over to his house our uhaul trailer decided to take a nice big dump on our luck so far this tour...apparently the leaf spring that supports the axle gave way on one side which in turn caused one of the tires to rub against the wheel well...it wasn't really driveable so we called uhaul (luckily coby and chris got the insurance on it) and they paid to put us up in a hotel for the night...it was also lucky that we were right next to one when it broke down...so we got a nice free hotel stay and got our uhaul fixed first thing the next day...
the whole ordeal felt alot like our last time in okc back in march...we had just got on the road heading for kc and our van blew a spark plug and ended up causing a whole heap of trouble for us...we had to rent a van while ours got fixed so that we could play our two shows 5 hours away in kc...we then drove the 10 hour round trip back to okc to pick up our fixed van, return the rental and then head back to kc before making the 12 hour trek back home to ohio the next day...not much fun...we were definitly very fortunate this time around...
and then there was kansas city...
so we played okc (as the locals call it) on our last tour in the spring and did so with a pretty great local band called "the non"...they're an instrumental group and are young but incredibly talented...we made sure to get a show again with them this time around and they did not disappoint...you all should definitely check them out (if i haven't gushed about them to you already) and get their new cd...i believe it's available off their myspace: www.myspace.com/thenon ...we also are also working on getting a show together with them up in ohio so stay tuned for that...
the venue we played at was a place called "convergence" and it's basically a back room in a department store...it's cooler than it sounds, though...the non opened up the show (though they very well could have headlined) and brought their nice, big local following along with them...most everyone stuck around even though there were 4 bands on the bill and the show didn't start til 9pm...twjr played after the non, then state bird and discover america was last...it was a good time but there were a few technical snafu's that didn't get ironed out til discover america's set but all in all the show was a success...
rob (who runs convergence) was putting us up at his place once again but on the way over to his house our uhaul trailer decided to take a nice big dump on our luck so far this tour...apparently the leaf spring that supports the axle gave way on one side which in turn caused one of the tires to rub against the wheel well...it wasn't really driveable so we called uhaul (luckily coby and chris got the insurance on it) and they paid to put us up in a hotel for the night...it was also lucky that we were right next to one when it broke down...so we got a nice free hotel stay and got our uhaul fixed first thing the next day...
the whole ordeal felt alot like our last time in okc back in march...we had just got on the road heading for kc and our van blew a spark plug and ended up causing a whole heap of trouble for us...we had to rent a van while ours got fixed so that we could play our two shows 5 hours away in kc...we then drove the 10 hour round trip back to okc to pick up our fixed van, return the rental and then head back to kc before making the 12 hour trek back home to ohio the next day...not much fun...we were definitly very fortunate this time around...
and then there was kansas city...
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
abilene, tx
ok so i only had time to get one post in while we were in okc...and now i'm sitting in the attic at our friend seth's place in kansas city stealing one his neighbor's internet connection...i don't know why i feel the need to always say where i'm at while i'm writing these tour journals about past shows...i just suck at intro's i guess...
anyways...abilene is always one of our favorite places to play...the folks there are just too cool and always show us a really good time...this particular time was no different...the same dustin that set up our denton show also set up this abilene show...he's attending abilene christian university as are alot of the folks who came out to see us play this particular evening...he warned us that not that many people would show up since school is not in session but there was still a really good turnout...not as good as when we played there this past spring but still good in comparison to other places we've played thus far...
the show was at this cool coffehouse called "monk's"...dustin is doing a really good job of booking great bands to play there...last month one of my favorite bands, "the album leaf", performed there and next month "joy electric" is playing...this month they got to see the fine musical stylings of one chris staples and discover america...and of course the winston jazz routine and a lil ol' band called state bird...we "headlined" again, i guess...i still don't think that means anything...i just think that dustin likes us alot...
speaking of liking things alot...one thing i get to see alot of on this tour is chris staples in his underwear...yes indeedy...i'm the envy of you all i'm sure...in fact he and i are sharing this nice air conditioned attic as i speak (er, type)...which also reminds me...it's late o'clock and i'm resorting to talking about guys in their underwear...
only two more posts and i'm all caught up...
anyways...abilene is always one of our favorite places to play...the folks there are just too cool and always show us a really good time...this particular time was no different...the same dustin that set up our denton show also set up this abilene show...he's attending abilene christian university as are alot of the folks who came out to see us play this particular evening...he warned us that not that many people would show up since school is not in session but there was still a really good turnout...not as good as when we played there this past spring but still good in comparison to other places we've played thus far...
the show was at this cool coffehouse called "monk's"...dustin is doing a really good job of booking great bands to play there...last month one of my favorite bands, "the album leaf", performed there and next month "joy electric" is playing...this month they got to see the fine musical stylings of one chris staples and discover america...and of course the winston jazz routine and a lil ol' band called state bird...we "headlined" again, i guess...i still don't think that means anything...i just think that dustin likes us alot...
speaking of liking things alot...one thing i get to see alot of on this tour is chris staples in his underwear...yes indeedy...i'm the envy of you all i'm sure...in fact he and i are sharing this nice air conditioned attic as i speak (er, type)...which also reminds me...it's late o'clock and i'm resorting to talking about guys in their underwear...
only two more posts and i'm all caught up...
denton, tx
i'm sitting in our hotel room here in oklahoma city and i'm going to attempt to write about three shows ago in denton but the details may be a little fuzzy...it's been a combination of late nights, long drives and alot of hanging out with our texas friends that have prevented me from getting on to post about the tour...my apologies...i also have alot of pictures to upload but the connection here in this fine days inn is a little spotty...suprising, i know...i'll try to get them up next time...
we played at a pretty cool club/bar in denton called "hailey's"...we didn't get the greatest turnout to the show in the world...but what we didn't get in quantity we made up for in quality...the show was set up by our good friend dustin, who also set up our show in abilene...he also helps head up the production company that is putting out the "murkville" compilation we are going to be apart of with alot of other great bands...which by the way is slated to come out oct. 27th...
so for this show state bird actually "headlined" i guess...which is just a big way of saying that we played last...which really doesn't mean much on a tour like this but it still was kind of cool to get "top billing"...i'm throwing out all the industry words here...i'm so hip and with it...anyways, winston jazz played first, then discover america and then us...the guy who opened up the show was very good as well...his name was jeremy and was kind enough to let most of us stay over at his place in denton...
the big story from this show was what happened afterwards, though...apparently there was a big shindig going on at someone's house nearby and all of us bands were invited...so we headed over there along with dustin and as we got close we could tell it was going to be a pretty crazy party...probably not one we needed to be at...and that was confirmed as we were driving by said house looking for a parking space and heard a guy shouting "hey someone call an ambulance...this guy got stabbed!"...we couldn't tell if it was a joke but we just kept on driving anyways and it was a good thing we did...the cops weren't far behind and dustin's car got pinned in as he got there a few minutes before us...turns out it wasn't a joke and it was a pretty big deal...some of the other guys in the band actually saw the bloody kid slumped over and trying to get help...pretty crazy and unfortunately for the fine people we met in denton, it's probably going to scar our memories of the place...we're just lucky we didn't get there sooner...
so that was denton...good times and crazy stories...
we played at a pretty cool club/bar in denton called "hailey's"...we didn't get the greatest turnout to the show in the world...but what we didn't get in quantity we made up for in quality...the show was set up by our good friend dustin, who also set up our show in abilene...he also helps head up the production company that is putting out the "murkville" compilation we are going to be apart of with alot of other great bands...which by the way is slated to come out oct. 27th...
so for this show state bird actually "headlined" i guess...which is just a big way of saying that we played last...which really doesn't mean much on a tour like this but it still was kind of cool to get "top billing"...i'm throwing out all the industry words here...i'm so hip and with it...anyways, winston jazz played first, then discover america and then us...the guy who opened up the show was very good as well...his name was jeremy and was kind enough to let most of us stay over at his place in denton...
the big story from this show was what happened afterwards, though...apparently there was a big shindig going on at someone's house nearby and all of us bands were invited...so we headed over there along with dustin and as we got close we could tell it was going to be a pretty crazy party...probably not one we needed to be at...and that was confirmed as we were driving by said house looking for a parking space and heard a guy shouting "hey someone call an ambulance...this guy got stabbed!"...we couldn't tell if it was a joke but we just kept on driving anyways and it was a good thing we did...the cops weren't far behind and dustin's car got pinned in as he got there a few minutes before us...turns out it wasn't a joke and it was a pretty big deal...some of the other guys in the band actually saw the bloody kid slumped over and trying to get help...pretty crazy and unfortunately for the fine people we met in denton, it's probably going to scar our memories of the place...we're just lucky we didn't get there sooner...
so that was denton...good times and crazy stories...
Saturday, June 23, 2007
tuscaloosa, al & little rock, ar
i'm going to combine the tuscaloosa and little rock entries to save myself a little time...we've been doing alot of travelling the past two days and i haven't had that much time to get on and post...and to be honest, there wasn't a whole lot concerning these two shows to write home about...
there were many positives about both shows but a whole lot of negatives to go along with them...we played at a relatively small, modern christian coffeehouse in tuscaloosa called "the pour cafe"...there was a decent turnout but the sound wasn't that great and got us a little frustrated...though we did take a few funny pictures afterwards with some vacation bible school props that you all can see on the flickr site...
we then got to hang with the really cool folks that put on the show...their names were buddy and haily and they showed us as good of a time as i'm sure you can have in alabama...we stayed the night at buddy's very hip loft apartment in downtown tuscaloosa...it seemed way out of place in alabama...i was going to snap some pics of it but didn't get a chance as we had to ship out pretty quick in the morning for our 6 hour or so drive to little rock...
we were a little nervous about the show in little rock, arkansas as it was going to be at another christian coffeehouse called "the rhythm & brews" and we don't usually fit in well at those venues...this one wasn't much different but once again the night was redeemed by a terrific place to stay...
we ended up getting to the venue a little late and we could tell they were already a little peeved at us for that...there were alot of bands/groups on the bill for that night and our styles didn't really mesh up well with any of them except for maybe one other band called "garage voice"...they're from seattle and were super nice guys so that was a bonus...
we then took off for the place we scored to stay at...we didn't quite know what to expect but our expectations were definitely exceded...it was by far the nicest place we've stayed at all tour...it was the home of a very nice family who had plenty of rooms w/ beds, showers and even a heated swimming pool...and when i say this house was nice, i mean it was "mtv cribs" nice...paige (the matriarch in this fine family) showed us that the best part of little rock was definitely at their house...
they had donuts waiting for us when we woke up and packed a cooler full of cold beverages for our trip to denton, tx today...bands like us are very grateful for families like the jenkin's who know how to make us feel like a million bucks...if you ever want to know how to treat a band right, i'm sure they could teach you a lesson or two...
so tonight we're at this really cool bar/club here in denton, tx called "hailey's"...it was set up by our good friend dustin and promises to be a great show...but that's about all i can fit in to this entry for these two little shows...i'm sure these next two texas shows are going to require texas-sized posts to cover them, though...
tune in next time...
there were many positives about both shows but a whole lot of negatives to go along with them...we played at a relatively small, modern christian coffeehouse in tuscaloosa called "the pour cafe"...there was a decent turnout but the sound wasn't that great and got us a little frustrated...though we did take a few funny pictures afterwards with some vacation bible school props that you all can see on the flickr site...
we then got to hang with the really cool folks that put on the show...their names were buddy and haily and they showed us as good of a time as i'm sure you can have in alabama...we stayed the night at buddy's very hip loft apartment in downtown tuscaloosa...it seemed way out of place in alabama...i was going to snap some pics of it but didn't get a chance as we had to ship out pretty quick in the morning for our 6 hour or so drive to little rock...
we were a little nervous about the show in little rock, arkansas as it was going to be at another christian coffeehouse called "the rhythm & brews" and we don't usually fit in well at those venues...this one wasn't much different but once again the night was redeemed by a terrific place to stay...
we ended up getting to the venue a little late and we could tell they were already a little peeved at us for that...there were alot of bands/groups on the bill for that night and our styles didn't really mesh up well with any of them except for maybe one other band called "garage voice"...they're from seattle and were super nice guys so that was a bonus...
we then took off for the place we scored to stay at...we didn't quite know what to expect but our expectations were definitely exceded...it was by far the nicest place we've stayed at all tour...it was the home of a very nice family who had plenty of rooms w/ beds, showers and even a heated swimming pool...and when i say this house was nice, i mean it was "mtv cribs" nice...paige (the matriarch in this fine family) showed us that the best part of little rock was definitely at their house...
they had donuts waiting for us when we woke up and packed a cooler full of cold beverages for our trip to denton, tx today...bands like us are very grateful for families like the jenkin's who know how to make us feel like a million bucks...if you ever want to know how to treat a band right, i'm sure they could teach you a lesson or two...
so tonight we're at this really cool bar/club here in denton, tx called "hailey's"...it was set up by our good friend dustin and promises to be a great show...but that's about all i can fit in to this entry for these two little shows...i'm sure these next two texas shows are going to require texas-sized posts to cover them, though...
tune in next time...
Thursday, June 21, 2007
jackson, ms
what do you call an egg on the beach?
a sandy eggo...
not make sense? that's because it's supposed to be a waffle on the beach...but twjr's nate messed it up from the stage a few nights back and hasn't lived it down yet...chris has since came up with his own clever version of the joke:
what do you call a hamburger on the beach?
a sandy patty...
fun times from the road...right now we're hanging out at "the pour cafe" in tuscaloosa, alabama...we just got some free pizza and we're in air conditioning...a very welcome respite from the confines of our steamy van...i think it's in the 90's today...the humidity doesn't seem too bad but that really doesn't mean much down here in the south...
last night we played in jackson, ms...i was trying to figure out if that's where johnny cash and june carter were wanting to go in that song of theirs...nate quinn seems to think it was jackson, tennessee...either way, we had a good time down in this jackson...the show was at a place called "swell 'o venue"...i already made a few jokes about it's name in yesterday's post so i'll spare'm today...it was actually a pretty cool place...it was a venue/skate park/skate shop/coffee shop...a very interesting concoction for sure...
the show was set up by a guy named dan who's a friend of chris' and currently plays in a great band called questions in dialect...he was a very nice guy...we had a pretty decent turnout for the show and actually played outside in the skate park...our set spawned a deep south dance party spearheaded by chris and the jazz boys...it had all the makings of a hoedown although it didn't quite reach that level...it was fun nonetheless...
dan got us a place to stay at another member of questions in dialects' apartment...i forget his name but it was a pretty small place and we all had to cram in on the floor...they had a swimming pool at their complex though which more than made up for that in my mind...
tonight promises to be another good show...we're up first though and i need to get set up...
there are some pics from last night's show up on the flickr site...
until next time...
a sandy eggo...
not make sense? that's because it's supposed to be a waffle on the beach...but twjr's nate messed it up from the stage a few nights back and hasn't lived it down yet...chris has since came up with his own clever version of the joke:
what do you call a hamburger on the beach?
a sandy patty...
fun times from the road...right now we're hanging out at "the pour cafe" in tuscaloosa, alabama...we just got some free pizza and we're in air conditioning...a very welcome respite from the confines of our steamy van...i think it's in the 90's today...the humidity doesn't seem too bad but that really doesn't mean much down here in the south...
last night we played in jackson, ms...i was trying to figure out if that's where johnny cash and june carter were wanting to go in that song of theirs...nate quinn seems to think it was jackson, tennessee...either way, we had a good time down in this jackson...the show was at a place called "swell 'o venue"...i already made a few jokes about it's name in yesterday's post so i'll spare'm today...it was actually a pretty cool place...it was a venue/skate park/skate shop/coffee shop...a very interesting concoction for sure...
the show was set up by a guy named dan who's a friend of chris' and currently plays in a great band called questions in dialect...he was a very nice guy...we had a pretty decent turnout for the show and actually played outside in the skate park...our set spawned a deep south dance party spearheaded by chris and the jazz boys...it had all the makings of a hoedown although it didn't quite reach that level...it was fun nonetheless...
dan got us a place to stay at another member of questions in dialects' apartment...i forget his name but it was a pretty small place and we all had to cram in on the floor...they had a swimming pool at their complex though which more than made up for that in my mind...
tonight promises to be another good show...we're up first though and i need to get set up...
there are some pics from last night's show up on the flickr site...
until next time...
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
chattanooga, tn
i'm sitting here in jackson, mississippi watching the boys from the winston jazz routine sound check before their set...after them we'll go on and then discover america will round things out...we're playing at a pretty swell venue called "swell o' venue"...a very descriptive name if you ask me...
last night we played in chatt-town as it's affectionately dubbed by the locals...the jazz boyz played at a joint called "the barking legs theater" which looked pretty cool...discover america and ourselves rocked out a coffee shop called "cafe mi aroma" on the campus of the university of tennesee chattanooga...there was a pretty good turnout and a nice faithful group of chris staples/twothirtyeight fans...i think that kind of weirds him out sometimes but luckily he wasn't in the room when the band following him gushed praises for everything he's ever done...good times...
i snapped a few shots of chris/da performing at the cafe and put them up on flickr...there are also a few other random shots from the road as well as some from this sweet local bar we went to after the show called "the pickle barrel"...it was in a flat-iron building of sorts so it kind of just tapered off and was all kinds of rustic and cool inside...then we stayed at the very pimp dwellings of some of nate phillips' family friends just outside of chattanooga...there was ample space for us all to lay our weary heads which is always a plus for a travelling group of 11 people...
twjr just got a request to play some skynyrd...we're definitely in the deep south, my friends...
later ya'll...
last night we played in chatt-town as it's affectionately dubbed by the locals...the jazz boyz played at a joint called "the barking legs theater" which looked pretty cool...discover america and ourselves rocked out a coffee shop called "cafe mi aroma" on the campus of the university of tennesee chattanooga...there was a pretty good turnout and a nice faithful group of chris staples/twothirtyeight fans...i think that kind of weirds him out sometimes but luckily he wasn't in the room when the band following him gushed praises for everything he's ever done...good times...
i snapped a few shots of chris/da performing at the cafe and put them up on flickr...there are also a few other random shots from the road as well as some from this sweet local bar we went to after the show called "the pickle barrel"...it was in a flat-iron building of sorts so it kind of just tapered off and was all kinds of rustic and cool inside...then we stayed at the very pimp dwellings of some of nate phillips' family friends just outside of chattanooga...there was ample space for us all to lay our weary heads which is always a plus for a travelling group of 11 people...
twjr just got a request to play some skynyrd...we're definitely in the deep south, my friends...
later ya'll...
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
nashville, tn
this was our third time as a band going through nashville while on tour but our first actual time playing here and let me tell ya...nashville didn't let us down...the place we played at was called "the 5 spot"...it was a very hip little bar in town...this was the nashville version of twjr's cd release show so alot of their friends from down here came...the place was pretty packed which made the show that much more fun...a very cool guy/band opened up for us...his stuff was very good...i believe his name was brian militana...
i just started up a flickr account to house select photos that i've been taking from the tour...it seems to be the easiest way to share pics with you all...i tried to post some in the last blog entry but was getting all kinds of a hassle...this is much more simple...you can look at them here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/9116489@N06/ ...i'll let you know when i put new ones up...
tonight we travel to chattanooga, tn to play...unfortunately we couldn't fit on the same bill as where twjr got booked so discover america and us are playing at a some form of a coffee bar maybe? the venue where twjr is playing sounds pretty cool...they're also playing with a guy by the name of aaron roche whose house i along w/ coby, matt and nate (from twjr) stayed at last night...he and his wife were kind enough to shack us up while a few of nate's other friends from down here housed the remaining members of the bands...but anyways...aaron is a fine singer and guitarist...i really wish i could catch his show...he played a while back at the renovare in dover and i really enjoyed it...oh well, maybe next time...
over and out,
ryan
i just started up a flickr account to house select photos that i've been taking from the tour...it seems to be the easiest way to share pics with you all...i tried to post some in the last blog entry but was getting all kinds of a hassle...this is much more simple...you can look at them here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/9116489@N06/ ...i'll let you know when i put new ones up...
tonight we travel to chattanooga, tn to play...unfortunately we couldn't fit on the same bill as where twjr got booked so discover america and us are playing at a some form of a coffee bar maybe? the venue where twjr is playing sounds pretty cool...they're also playing with a guy by the name of aaron roche whose house i along w/ coby, matt and nate (from twjr) stayed at last night...he and his wife were kind enough to shack us up while a few of nate's other friends from down here housed the remaining members of the bands...but anyways...aaron is a fine singer and guitarist...i really wish i could catch his show...he played a while back at the renovare in dover and i really enjoyed it...oh well, maybe next time...
over and out,
ryan
Monday, June 18, 2007
lexington, ky
well we finally got the heck out of dodge and made it to lexington...we played at a little bar/restaurant called alondra's...it seemed like an alright place...unfortunately not that many people decided to show up...oh well, you get a few bad apples in the bunch...we just hope there aren't that many more bad ones...
everyone played very good sets...state bird played first, then twjr and discover america played last of us three...a local band closed the show...they were supposed to be a "big draw" as the promoter put it...big in kentucky must mean 25...because that's about how many people were there...
at any rate...the guys in the last band were pretty cool and offered us a place to stay for the night...that's no small thing when you have a group of 11 people...luckily they had a big basement and one cat per person on the tour...mostly all little kittens which were fun to watch wrestle around and kill small animals...i even rescued one from a tree after he thought he could climb it and actually get back down...rascally lil devil...
we're in a small coffee shop in nashville right now killing some time before our show tonight...should be a good one we hope...i took a few pictures of twjr and da's sets last night plus a few more from life on the road but don't have time to upload them now...should have time tomorrow...
until then...
Sunday, June 17, 2007
bellville, ohio
well, i'm posting from my own home once again...it seems we've had a few hitches (literally, ha) in our tour plans already...there were some issues with the hitch and trailer the guys are renting to haul all the gear in so coby and chris (from discover america) were running around all day trying to get it figured out which in turn meant we couldn't pack up for the long haul like we were hoping to...
thankfully they got the problem fixed just in time for us to make it to the show in bellville...which was pretty great i must say...the place we played at was actually an old opera house complete with a raised stage, curtains, wooden floors, etc...bellville was a very quaint, picturesque little town...right on the town square was a gazebo where a bluesgrass/country type group was performing for the locals...i kind of wished that i could've checked that out as well as listen to another fine round of performances from twjr and da...everyone's sets are sounding much tighter and we're getting alot of the pre-tour kinks worked out...
i forgot my camera down with my bags in new phila otherwise i would have taken some photos of the venue and posted them here...oh well...maybe i'll remember to snap a few tomorrow when we play in kentucky...
which reminds me i need to get to bed as we are taking off in the early afternoon...
so long all...
thankfully they got the problem fixed just in time for us to make it to the show in bellville...which was pretty great i must say...the place we played at was actually an old opera house complete with a raised stage, curtains, wooden floors, etc...bellville was a very quaint, picturesque little town...right on the town square was a gazebo where a bluesgrass/country type group was performing for the locals...i kind of wished that i could've checked that out as well as listen to another fine round of performances from twjr and da...everyone's sets are sounding much tighter and we're getting alot of the pre-tour kinks worked out...
i forgot my camera down with my bags in new phila otherwise i would have taken some photos of the venue and posted them here...oh well...maybe i'll remember to snap a few tomorrow when we play in kentucky...
which reminds me i need to get to bed as we are taking off in the early afternoon...
so long all...
Saturday, June 16, 2007
dover, ohio
well here we go...
the big tour has officially begun...the discover america/winston jazz routine/state bird summer tour...although, i'm still at home...in my pajamas...typing on my computer...buuuut this afternoon we take off for lands unknown...the great wide wonder that is the u. s. of a...from sea to shining sea...
i've kind of forsaken this whole world known as digital bloggery for a good little spell...but in the hopes of keeping a daily (or close to it) log of the happenings of our life on the road for future nostalgic purposes i'm attempting at resurrecting my journaling sensibilities...i apologize in advance to anyone outside of myself that may end up reading this...
alright well i've got to keep this short...i haven't actually packed yet...i keep putting it off because i don't know how to pack for being on the road for three weeks...i think i'll just blindly throw clothes out of my drawers and into my suitcase...tonight we play at a place called the "bellville opera house" in bellville, ohio...it's a small town just outside mansfield where our fine friends "the winston jazz routine" hail from...this is going to be their cd release show and what a fine cd it is i must say...i feel honored to be their friends and to have gotten a chance to lend a little helping hand to one song on the album...i highly recommend you pick it up...you can do so here: http://www.merchline.com/therecordmachine/
ok friendly band plugging aside...for the kickoff show last night we played at the renovare cafe in dover...the whole night consisted of somewhere in the region of 7-9 bands or so...it was quite a great night...thanks to all who came out and stuck around for us last three bands (the schedule was running a bit behind)...but it was good to have such a large turnout and see all our friends before we take off...our sets were a little rough but they usually always are at the start of a tour...it's going to be crazy playing a show every night of the week for the next two weeks...which also means i get to hear the fine music of the winston jazz routine and discover america every night as well...what a treat...
ok, time to get to that packing...thanks to all those of you keeping us in your thoughts and prayers while we're on the road...
God bless,
ryan
the big tour has officially begun...the discover america/winston jazz routine/state bird summer tour...although, i'm still at home...in my pajamas...typing on my computer...buuuut this afternoon we take off for lands unknown...the great wide wonder that is the u. s. of a...from sea to shining sea...
i've kind of forsaken this whole world known as digital bloggery for a good little spell...but in the hopes of keeping a daily (or close to it) log of the happenings of our life on the road for future nostalgic purposes i'm attempting at resurrecting my journaling sensibilities...i apologize in advance to anyone outside of myself that may end up reading this...
alright well i've got to keep this short...i haven't actually packed yet...i keep putting it off because i don't know how to pack for being on the road for three weeks...i think i'll just blindly throw clothes out of my drawers and into my suitcase...tonight we play at a place called the "bellville opera house" in bellville, ohio...it's a small town just outside mansfield where our fine friends "the winston jazz routine" hail from...this is going to be their cd release show and what a fine cd it is i must say...i feel honored to be their friends and to have gotten a chance to lend a little helping hand to one song on the album...i highly recommend you pick it up...you can do so here: http://www.merchline.com/therecordmachine/
ok friendly band plugging aside...for the kickoff show last night we played at the renovare cafe in dover...the whole night consisted of somewhere in the region of 7-9 bands or so...it was quite a great night...thanks to all who came out and stuck around for us last three bands (the schedule was running a bit behind)...but it was good to have such a large turnout and see all our friends before we take off...our sets were a little rough but they usually always are at the start of a tour...it's going to be crazy playing a show every night of the week for the next two weeks...which also means i get to hear the fine music of the winston jazz routine and discover america every night as well...what a treat...
ok, time to get to that packing...thanks to all those of you keeping us in your thoughts and prayers while we're on the road...
God bless,
ryan
Thursday, June 14, 2007
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
