The Southeastern Touring Nexus (Part 1)
I'm glad that I'm an introvert. The road has been a lonely place for me over the past two weeks. I'm the kind of person who gathers strength and energy from time spent alone. My recent trips to Knoxville, TN, Charlotte, NC and to Atlanta, GA were energizing.
I haven't performed in Tennessee since the Dirty Wake tour back in 2000. My music never really took off in TN so I wasn't expecting much from my show at Barley's Taproom and Pizzeria. On the morning of January 20, 2005, I headed over the mountains to Knoxville. I stayed at a Motel 6 by the freeway junction; not the nicest place, but not bad either.
The show at Barley's wasn't great. I've played much worse venues under much dire circumstances. The soundsystem was very decent, though. I drew about five people from the press I generated. About 50 or so people drifted through he restaurant throughout the night. The problem with the gig was that I was background music. It was a hard crowd to read, too. Some of my covers received thunderous applause, some didn't. Some of my originals had a similar reaction. All in all, it wasn't a complete waste of time, as I sold quite a few CD's.
The next day I traveled to Charlotte for a show at the Evening Muse. This was a great show! About forty people came out for the show, too. Nathan Davis opened the late slot with me. Earlier, Dromedary and Devon Sproulle played. There's something about seeing musicians play exotic instruments well. Dromedary must be the most talented folks I've met on the road in the past year.
My set was good. Things started to turn into a pub atmosphere near the end of my two hour set. Jon Wells had a great Napoleon Dynamite impersonation that kept the night fresh. Again, I played my "Happy Song #1" near the end of the night. I feel embarrassed to play this song, but I have to take responsibility for my own actions. The song deals with some very serious issues that are easy to make light of. It's quite sad if you knew the real story.
The threat of an ice storm kept the night interesting. I discovered Dave bribes Time Out on this particular trip, so, I had plenty of music to wrap my brain around. Have you heard this album? Go ahead and buy this if you are remotely interested in Jazz. It's on just about every Jazz critic's top 100 album list. The cool thing about this album is that it is entirely in compound time, with a few 4/4 exceptions. It may be the first math rock album, too. The jury is still out on that. To all Jazz enthusiasts, I do understand that Jazz music begins and ends with Louis Armstrong. I'm just taking a detour in my education...
I took the weekend off, but I was back on the road on Tuesday morning to play Smith's Olde Bar in Atlanta, GA. What a great club! Geez. I forget how great this club really is. The sound is impeccable. The stage has a curtain. There's a backstage. I just wish I brought more people out. Thanks to the Marshall Seese band and the thirty or so folks who came. I had a great time!
I haven't performed in Tennessee since the Dirty Wake tour back in 2000. My music never really took off in TN so I wasn't expecting much from my show at Barley's Taproom and Pizzeria. On the morning of January 20, 2005, I headed over the mountains to Knoxville. I stayed at a Motel 6 by the freeway junction; not the nicest place, but not bad either.
The show at Barley's wasn't great. I've played much worse venues under much dire circumstances. The soundsystem was very decent, though. I drew about five people from the press I generated. About 50 or so people drifted through he restaurant throughout the night. The problem with the gig was that I was background music. It was a hard crowd to read, too. Some of my covers received thunderous applause, some didn't. Some of my originals had a similar reaction. All in all, it wasn't a complete waste of time, as I sold quite a few CD's.
The next day I traveled to Charlotte for a show at the Evening Muse. This was a great show! About forty people came out for the show, too. Nathan Davis opened the late slot with me. Earlier, Dromedary and Devon Sproulle played. There's something about seeing musicians play exotic instruments well. Dromedary must be the most talented folks I've met on the road in the past year.
My set was good. Things started to turn into a pub atmosphere near the end of my two hour set. Jon Wells had a great Napoleon Dynamite impersonation that kept the night fresh. Again, I played my "Happy Song #1" near the end of the night. I feel embarrassed to play this song, but I have to take responsibility for my own actions. The song deals with some very serious issues that are easy to make light of. It's quite sad if you knew the real story.
The threat of an ice storm kept the night interesting. I discovered Dave bribes Time Out on this particular trip, so, I had plenty of music to wrap my brain around. Have you heard this album? Go ahead and buy this if you are remotely interested in Jazz. It's on just about every Jazz critic's top 100 album list. The cool thing about this album is that it is entirely in compound time, with a few 4/4 exceptions. It may be the first math rock album, too. The jury is still out on that. To all Jazz enthusiasts, I do understand that Jazz music begins and ends with Louis Armstrong. I'm just taking a detour in my education...
I took the weekend off, but I was back on the road on Tuesday morning to play Smith's Olde Bar in Atlanta, GA. What a great club! Geez. I forget how great this club really is. The sound is impeccable. The stage has a curtain. There's a backstage. I just wish I brought more people out. Thanks to the Marshall Seese band and the thirty or so folks who came. I had a great time!
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