amarillo

every tour has at least one show that is completely, unexpectedly, awesome.

there have been a few of those on this tour, (the Harlem show is definitely up there), but the most surprising this time was Amarillo.

we had just spent two days traveling from Maryland, with a quick stop over and show in St Louis, when we arrived in Texas.

our bodies were stiff from all that sitting, and our brains were delirious.  (we came up with a brilliant plan to tour via horse and carriage next time.  we really entertained that shit for a solid several minutes.)

so, yes.  delirium.  that was our state when we rolled into the 806 in Amarillo.

we had no idea what to expect from the 806, and we were pleased to roll up onto a funky cafe in an happening part of town.  we were running super late, but our friend Toby- of Former Friends of Young Americans- was there and ready to go.  so he helped us unload our gear, and just as soon as we were set up he began his set.

the crowd was small (though perhaps not, considering it was 10pm on a Wednesday), but they were attentive and enthusiastic.  and i think any musician will tell you that it's way more fulfilling to play for a handful of receptive and interested people, than a room full of people that couldn't care less about new music.

by the time we got to the last couple of songs of our set some more faces had shown up at the bar, and they wanted us to play more, so we played more.  it was awesome.  they were awesome.

one of the guys who came to the show at the end offered to let us crash at his place down the street.  his place just happened to be a gigantic print-making studio, where he and another band mate also live and play music.

it was huge and dope and comfortable and awesome.

((Foxfire Experiment, if you happen to be reading this, thanks again for putting us up!!  you guys rock.))

there are many more stories i could tell, but i'm sick of writing now.  maybe i'll tell them some other time.  and i do need to let you know all about the madness/not-so-madness of NYC.

until the next,

s

currently listening to:  Joy Division

hi from new york

we made it across the country!  more than 3000 miles, a shit ton of toll roads through the midwest, and outrageously beautiful fall foliage in upstate New York.

The shows have been all over the place.  We got heckled by an old man in Oneonta, and i found my inner New Yorker when someone requested Journey in the middle of a song.  (it might just be my favorite rock n' roll moment to date.)

New York pizza totally lives up to its reputation.  Our new favorite bar is Burn Castle, where the Barley Wine is strong and smooth and noise is kept to a low hum with a periodic and gentle 'shhhh' from the bar tender.  (That sounds weird, but it was perfect.)

Also - we bumped into Louis CK on the street!  He was eating ice cream on the corner with his kids, it was almost too perfect to believe.  We tried to be cool, but given the fact that he is awesome and we love him, we couldn't help but loudly identifying him and then saying "you're fucking awesome!"  (because i am a jerk who drops the f bomb in front of children.)  he gave us a side glance and a nod, and then got the hell out of there.

Last night we played at the Shrine in Harlem (pictured above), and it was hands-down our favorite show of tour so far.  The space was funky-- plastered in posters, records and other music memorabilia, the vibe was warm and friendly, the music was eclectic and groovy, and the sound man NAILED it!!  Mati, if you're out there, will you tour with us and be our sound man?!?  :)  seriously.

Tonight we play at The Way Station in Brooklyn!

yay.  i love tour.  and i definitely LOVE new york.

until the next,

s

chicago

We busted ass across the west half of the US - through snow, construction, fall foliage, and the craziest lightning storm either of us has ever seen - stopping twice to play in Denver and Lincoln, before pausing for three days in Chicago.

When we arrived in the windy city we were met with a sudden rain storm, a perfectly ominous setting for our visit with Fearless Radio on Michigan Ave.  Listen to the podcast.

That night we played a cozy show at Uncommon Ground with Brice Woodall, and then proceeded to enjoy the shit out of being tourists for the next two days.

The Art Institute, the river walk, Handlebar in Wicker Park... those were some of the highlights.  and the bean, of course.  (aka Cloud Nimbus 9)

The architecture, the lines, the stainless steel train cars, the brick and grit and industry of it all... Chicago, we like you.


until the next,

s

news and denver and so on

we've been back from the last tour (and first trip to denver) for a couple of weeks now.

it was all awesome.  denver was good, salt lake city was good, camping and not being able to check email/facebook/anything 3G-related for three days, was GOOD.

now we're home and our new album drops in a few months and we're touring to new york and back in october and we're writing new songs that are fucking seriously grooving.

that is all.

hey, do you know anyone with a label that might want to release our album on vinyl?

if you do, or you are, let me know.


currently listening to:  red play a new song on his acoustic.

driving across the desert

i've always thought the nevada desert was not much to look at.  but right now, in the blue-gray swallows of dusk, it has me utterly captivated.

we're rolling along, homeward bound, after our first tour to denver.

there's a feeling i always get on my way home from tour, a kind of premature nostalgia.

i'm staring out over a barren landscape, thinking about the shows we played and the people we met.  i'm pondering all the things we've talked about doing when we get home.  red wants to brew beer, i'm going to start making my own kombucha... and wouldn't it be nice to buy some land or least move into an actual apartment, but fuck all that let's tour more!...  the desert is vast and muted as we head west with the setting sun; as la-la-landia as my thoughts, and big enough to hold them and let them run wild all at once. 

the desert is brilliant like that.  and so is dusk.  everything is just so fucking magical at dusk...

"did you know that you always bite the straw?" red interrupts my reverie.  "i do not!", then glancing over at the straw coming out of the cup; "oh shit, i guess i do."  he's asking me to stop it please, but then realizes i'm not going to, and just who cares anyway.

we drink water from a to-go cup when we're making long drives.  

this particular cup is from a mcdonalds in wyoming, and i'm not proud to say it.  i truly hate mcdonalds and everything it represents, but sometimes you need exactly what it offers-- convenience, speed, and something sorta resembling food that will at least hold you over til the next stop.  (and in our case, a cup with a straw.)

"do you think anyone ever uses these buttons?" red wonders out loud.  he looks the plastic lid over and pushes in the star-shaped button marked 'other'.  "they don't even use them", he adds.  we decide it's cool that the lids are still made with those buttons, even if no one uses them (except for us, this once. and probably kids.)

i fetch my phone from my purse and take a photo of the lid, chuckling to myself about posting it on instagram.  i ask red for a silly caption but he's not having it; "you are NOT posting a photo of a mcdonalds lid on instagram!"  i realize that he's totally right.

i put the phone away and return my gaze to the desert.

currently listening to:  Nulla Cur (this has become the only thing we listen to while driving long distances.  it's great for mind-wandering.)

we like lamp

we have a hot new lighting fixture, which we made from metal pipes and random re-purposed finds from urban ore.

we rocked it for the first time at our recent show at brick and mortar music hall.

we'll be rocking it again at our next show, at hotel utah.

prepare to marvel.

[ha. ha ha]

the new song we're working on is siiiiiick.

but you won't get to hear it for a while.

or maybe you will?  

we're touring to the east coast for the first time ever, this october.

our second album will be out in november.



and so on.



until the next,

s

 currently listening to:  utensils rustling and plastic bags crinkling.

more canada

a house show came through in Calgary on saturday night. it was rad.

no, rad doesn't do it justice. it was one of those nights when the world is magical wonderland of yum.

because of the flooding- and the mass amount of devastation, displacement, and all around confusion that ensued- there was a very palpable sense that people needed an excuse to come together, kick back, and enjoy a night together.i feel pretty damn lucky that we got to be part of that night, in the midst of such a strange and record-setting moment in Calgary.

i decided to auction off a poster (which i randomly made for the festival), made of old poster cuttings and so on.

it sold for $30. proceeds went to a local organization helping flood victims. groovy.



canada is awesome. the people, the culture, the vibe.... the scenery. damn. the whole time we were there i could see the wheels turning in both of our heads: how might we move to Canada someday?

(it should be noted that we have this thought every time we visit a new place that we really like.)

canada is special, though.  folks are nice.  drivers are courteous.  there isn't this angst-y, angry energy flailing about everywhere like there is in the states. 

the only shitty part about going to canada is dealing with the border.

we got shook down, sweated, and car searched on both sides.  of course.  "do you smoke?"  "no"  "why do you have a lighter?"  "uh, candles."

what.  a person can't just have a lighter without being suspect?
   
the US border people freaked out at me for leaving to use the bathroom.

there were some french kids at the US border who accidentally found themselves there (not intending to leave canada at all), and were getting their car searched. thoroughly. bienvenue aux etats-unis.

anyway.  people that work at the border are power-hungry jerks.  that's all.

when we returned to idaho- to uncover the treasure we had buried for ourselves there- we were shocked and dismayed to discover that our stuff had been stolen.   

yay, america.  welcome home, let me slap you in the face!

why do i feel like that sort of thing wouldn't happen in canada?



until the next,

s


currently listening to:  Jill Scott