Castaways and Cutouts
10/20/07 – 12:30 PM – The Salem House
We played in San Francisco two nights ago. The Edinburgh Castle had a really nice little room for music. It's nice when there's a separate room for playing and you're not just in front of people who want to drink and not listen. Wayward Sway played first and put on a great Americana set, with vocal harmonies and mandolin and banjo. Then came Chris Koza's band, who were also lots of fun. Then we played to a small but appreciative audience. We had some sound issues – I've been trying to cover for the lack of bass with my guitar, but it's hard to do that and keep things from getting muddy. It was a fun show, though. I got to perform Julia in front of Julia for the first time, so that was a special occasion. Maggie Morris, whom I finally got to meet, played last. She was great, as was Nick, her wildman drummer/hurricane.
We stayed in quite comfortable quarters at Andrew's place, and he even made pasta with homemade sauce for us the next day. Then we got in the van and wandered around the city for awhile. The nice thing about always being lost is that you can never make a wrong turn. We went to the Golden Gate Bridge vista point and gazed across the bay. It was quite beautiful.
Then we were off to Chico, where we played our first ever house show at The Salem House (which was coincidentally their first show as well). Everyone is super-cool and friendly here. Erin Lizardo played first to a completely rapt audience. If you're into Joanna, Devendra, Cat Power, or NMH, check her out. Then came Belda Beast, who also kicked my ass with a really great ensemble sound. They've got a great collective thing going that I'm totally jealous of. They set up the show, and we're playing with them again tonight. We played last, and it was fun, but unfortunately a lot of folks had gotten really drunk and/or left by then. More unfortunately, my string-breaking ability seems to have advanced to the point where all I have to do is look at a guitar and the buggers start to snap. I broke the B on my guitar and then I broke the D on Zach's guitar. Blech! I swear I'm not using razor blades for picks. Oh well. We had a good time anyway.
Tonight we go to Redding to play one of the final shows at the Red White and Brew Pub, then tomorrow it's Eugene, where I finally get to see Beth.
We played in San Francisco two nights ago. The Edinburgh Castle had a really nice little room for music. It's nice when there's a separate room for playing and you're not just in front of people who want to drink and not listen. Wayward Sway played first and put on a great Americana set, with vocal harmonies and mandolin and banjo. Then came Chris Koza's band, who were also lots of fun. Then we played to a small but appreciative audience. We had some sound issues – I've been trying to cover for the lack of bass with my guitar, but it's hard to do that and keep things from getting muddy. It was a fun show, though. I got to perform Julia in front of Julia for the first time, so that was a special occasion. Maggie Morris, whom I finally got to meet, played last. She was great, as was Nick, her wildman drummer/hurricane.
We stayed in quite comfortable quarters at Andrew's place, and he even made pasta with homemade sauce for us the next day. Then we got in the van and wandered around the city for awhile. The nice thing about always being lost is that you can never make a wrong turn. We went to the Golden Gate Bridge vista point and gazed across the bay. It was quite beautiful.
Then we were off to Chico, where we played our first ever house show at The Salem House (which was coincidentally their first show as well). Everyone is super-cool and friendly here. Erin Lizardo played first to a completely rapt audience. If you're into Joanna, Devendra, Cat Power, or NMH, check her out. Then came Belda Beast, who also kicked my ass with a really great ensemble sound. They've got a great collective thing going that I'm totally jealous of. They set up the show, and we're playing with them again tonight. We played last, and it was fun, but unfortunately a lot of folks had gotten really drunk and/or left by then. More unfortunately, my string-breaking ability seems to have advanced to the point where all I have to do is look at a guitar and the buggers start to snap. I broke the B on my guitar and then I broke the D on Zach's guitar. Blech! I swear I'm not using razor blades for picks. Oh well. We had a good time anyway.
Tonight we go to Redding to play one of the final shows at the Red White and Brew Pub, then tomorrow it's Eugene, where I finally get to see Beth.
