Saturday, January 12, 2008

Tour Report, January 2008 :

Show 1: Orcas Island, WA - New Year's Eve show at Doe Bay Resort (see Jan. 2nd entry).

Show 2: Olympia, WA - Tiffany organized a super house-party show. Froseph played, followed by me and then Bryce Panic. Bryce's full-out rap set was revelatory. Froseph put it best: "Bryce is my new, most favorite superhero!"

Show 3: Spokane, WA - Benefit show for A.S.A.P. (I never did learn what that stood for). This was an anarchist house show filled with lots of youthful artists, dumpster divers, bike mechanics, and anti-imperialist tacticians. I played first, then had to split for my downtown show. Froseph reported that the night went swimmingly and he made many friends.

Show 4: Spokane, WA - Benefit show for my gas tank, at Prago Cafe. Prior to the show, the space had been rented by a flock of skydiving enthusiasts who were watching life-sized video projections of themselves leaping from planes, to the music of high-octane hardcore. Isamu Jordan, music columnist for The Spokesman-Review, was there and did a 20-minute interview after my performance. I sold at least 15 hats between sets. Turns out trucker hats are a worthwhile investment, unlike old cowboy boots! All hats were gone by show's end.

Show 5: Missoula, MT - Froseph and I were worried about this show, because I hadn't promoted it very well and because it was scheduled for 3 a.m. in a vintage clothing store. Fortunately, my new good friend Jeff Medley did everything required to make the show a grand success. He made excellent flyers, helped get us a great review--with photo--in the Missoula Independent, and chose the perfect venue: Hausfrau. Johna, the owner of Hausfrau, arranged a sharp opening band (a girl/guy saw-and-banjo duo).

A side-note about Johna: she lived directly across from me in an apartment building in Missoula back in 1989. I had a crush on her, and have wondered what became of her.

After the Missoula fun (thanks again, Jeff & Anne!), Froseph and I, fighting off tiredness, barreled four hours east to Earl and Susan's. The next morning Earl joined us for soak at Boiling River in Yellowstone Park. We discussed philosophy like angelheaded hipsters burning for the ancient heavenly connection to the starry dynamo.*

The next day Froseph & I, like Cassady & Kerouac, drove back to NoDak, where Frojak caught Amtrak home to his Winona shack. Farewell, amigo! Thanks for the great comradery and for recording my songs for the new CD.

*Ginsberg

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

alright! well put! a couple minor errors-our show at hausfrau was at 3pm, not 3am, and the opening band was a saw/mandolin duo. this really was a fantasical journey. i learned a whole lot about a whole lot. i hit the ground running as soon as i got back to winona. we're working on a really exciting mutual aid monthly newspaper for the winona community. the first issue will be out feb. 1st. i've also been working a lot with the recordings from orcas island and writing some songs as well. oh, and i just got a photocopier the other day, so i've been getting to know her and we've really hit it off! i think she's the one for me. i wake up everyday excited to be busy until bedtime.