-Southwest Tour Oct 5th-15th 2006-
San Luis Obispo, CA Oct. 5th-The Little Tour That Could:
Ok folks, here's the poop/skinny/info/411 on the first couple of days of our mini tour of the Southwest. It all started on a hot sunny day in Phoenix where Will ran out of gas on they way home from work then while packing up the remaining small items in the trailer we noticed that one of the tires was flat. Was this some sort of weird sign from the adversity gods? After a 2 and a half hour delay involving the crack staff at the local discount tire store located in lovely South Phoenix, we were on our way. It was now 7pm
During our 7 hour jaunt to Santa Clarita, California we realized a few things.
1. That 20 question hand held game that Chris got for his birthday is possessed by the devil.
2. Laptops with a DVD player are essential while touring.
3. Will snores while driving.
We finally got to Nick's parent's house at about 2:30am and immediately went to bed.......the same bed. Not really. We had to be up that next morning and be on the road by 6am in order to drive to San Luis Obispo to play our first show at Cal Poly. It was not easy to wake up that morning but is it ever easy to wake up? We were on the road by 6:15 and arrived in SLO at 10. We started playing at 11 on their outdoor stage. At 11:05 we had to stop because it began to rain. Great start eh? Nick began to clamor out to God with his fist raised high and after about 5 minutes the rain stopped and we were able to finish our set. That's our lead singer prophet. We then left SLO and hung out at Pismo Beach and Tom worked on his base coat. He is as bronzed as an Old Testament cow.
After a day at the beach we drove back to Nick's parent's house and had a birthday dinner for Chris. His body may have turned 78 but is maturity level is still holding strong at 16. Drinks were drunk, instruments were removed from the slumber of their cases, neighbors were annoyed and farm animals were safe.
More to come....
Pasedena, CA Oct 6th-City of Brotherly Smells:
Pasadena, city of brotherly smells. The day starts out like any other except for the delicious breakfast made for us by Nick's wonderful mother Beth. I think when the time comes for us to leave Santa Clarita we will all be very sad. We have not eaten this well since Lincoln was just a president, not a car.
Friday was a fairly uneventful day. Most of our time was spent working on Myspace and putting melted cheese in Will's suitcase. Everyone found his high fat new apparel to be the high point of the tour. However, we have not seen Will since. Word is, he is now living in an old refrigerator box down in Hollywood. Good luck little buddy.
After killing it on Myspace, we moved our butts down to Pasadena. We got there early and decided to try to hand out flyers, however it was soon that we found ourselves just walking around trying to find a bathroom for Nick. Afterwards, we ended up at the lovely Old Town Pub where we were to play our show. It was a cool little place located in an ally in downtown Pasadena. It had a speakeasy feel to it. So much so that Chris made everyone call him Al Capone and at one point he even threatened to kill Sean Connery. It was a hell of a crowd. All 5 of the people there seemed to not hate us. It was a good day in Pasadena.
A picture of a picture.
1.21 Jigawatts and the old clock tower
Proof of the Homeless Problem in Pasadena
Los Angeles & Long Beach, CA Oct 7th & 8th- The Magic Mountain Chilli Cheese Tour:
It's Sunday night at exactly midnight and we are heading back from Long Beach towards Santa Clarita and we are stuck in one hell of a traffic jam on the 710. The thing about L.A. is that you can always count on traffic.
It has been a busy couple of days of pure frolic....I need a better thesaurus. We started off Saturday morning by heading over to Magic Mountain for some fun in the sun. You see, Nick's younger sister Ashley happens to work there and was able to nab us some tickets. In all, it ended up saving us close to $400 dollars. Way to go little sis! We spent a good 5 hours there and hit a few rides. One of which is called the Colossus which is an old rickety wooden monster that should be renamed the Donkey Punch. Our kidneys will never be able to function properly again. It..s like driving a stagecoach over the Grand Canyon. The highlight of the day there was riding the most insane rollercoaster ever, Tatsu. Holy freaking hell. We hung face down and soared over the park like a bird....a sick and demented bird hell bent on suicide.
After our Magic Mountain experience Nick introduced us to a Southern California favorite: Tommy's Burgers. Apparently everything they serve there is covered in gallons of chili and cheese. Even the straws are soaked in it. Tom's cholesterol after eating was an impressive 490. The higher the better, right?
Three hours after our arteries had adapted to the new damns we had constructed in them, we headed out for West Hollywood and The Mint. The Mint is a kick ass little bar that has had some of the most amazing artists ever grace its stage. People like Jeff Buckley, Remy Zero, Tonic, Rod Stewart, Stevie Wonder, Sheryl Crow and Malcolm Jamaal Warner..wait...Malcolm Jamal Warner? Wet? The show was a huge success and a blast to play. We had an amazing crowd that included a lot of Nick..s family and friends. It was really great to see our great friend Lauren and her boyfriend Cooper. We also got to play with our good friend John Tucker's amazing band The Small Hours. Please check them out on myspace and give them a listen. You will not be disappointed.
Sunday we all got up and headed out to Brea for our much hyped Guitar Center show. We played an acoustic set and had a great time. The staff was awesome and was incredibly helpful. Nick and Chris had to be pried away from the vintage guitar and amp room. It was like Mecca in there. They had found their Wailing Wall.
After the Guitar Center show we headed out to Long Beach for our next show at the Blue Café. We got there very early and ended up eating at a local Mexican restaurant called Taco Beach. It was like a culinary fiesta in our mouths. After once again being gluttonous pigs we headed to the Wal-Mart to get Tom a jacket and ended up trying on every cheap hat they had there. It's amazing how many different hats can be made with the Corona emblem being shamelessly displayed. Will was hard pimpin' in his sweet Cadillac lid. We then headed over to the venue and played to a sold out show of 9 people. But hey, we played our hearts out for those 9 people.
More blizz-ogs to come
Glendale, CA Oct 9th -Yet Another tour Blog:
It's about 1:00pm on Tuesday.."morning" and Nick has been up for about an hour. Nick was lucky enough to get the best bed to sleep in at his parent..s house. It just happens to be in his little sister's room.
Will and Chris just got done watching Ferris Bueller's Day Off.
..Rooney..
Last night we played a gig at this cool little pub called The Scene in Glendale, Ca. It had a beat up swankiness to it if that makes any sense. We met some new people there who really seemed to like us. We also met a sweet weirdo of a guy who just sat in front of the bar and smiled all night. Apparently he was happy about something. Maybe it was because Will kissed him. That could be it.
The show went really well even though that last two bands didn..t show up. We played with Mayday! Mayday! & the Small Hours. Both of which are great bands that need to be checked out.
Immediately after the gig, Chris did what he traditionally does: Go for a nice jog. He..s at his happiest when he..s scampering through the soft underbelly of an unknown city at low speeds. God bless his little beard.
Today we will probably lounge around and work on myspace so hit us up and we will send you some love.
Santa Clarita, CA & Las Vegas, NV-Tour Blog Double Header:
Well here we are, back on the road again. We are about a half an hour outside Barstow, California heading towards Las Vegas and we are yet again stuck in a traffic jam.
California is not the easiest state to travel in but no worries, we are having a good time. The past day or so found doing what we do best, shooting pool while Will played some soothing piano. His version of Bette Midler's "Wind Beneath My Wings" was both stirring and haunting. It brought old emotions up to the surface as Nick began to tremble from the nostalgic feelings of being a Boy Scout in love with his Scout Master. I guess you never forget your first love.
After our pool hall sing-a-long, Nick decided that he wanted to hit Tommy's Burgers one more time before he left. This time we took pictures of the mess.
Following our little "death dinner", Nick's mother Beth thought it would be a good idea to torment Chris by dressing up her dogs in sweaters. No pun intended, but this is one of Chris' pet peeves. Just to irk him even more, she took the photo with his camera. Oh, the humanity.
Later we headed off for our final gig in the L.A. area. We played at a small little place called the Londoner. It was a tight squeeze on stage but we pulled it off. The highlight of the night was when Nick's father Chris joined us on stage to sing and play harmonica on an impromptu cover of "What I Iike About You " by The Romantics. At the end of the song, Nick's father was so excited that he ripped his t-shirt off and yelled "Who wants some of this?!?!?" He then attempted to start a fist fight with the dart board. The dart board wisely minded his own business and things quickly cooled down.
This morning we said goodbye to Nick's parents and were on our way. In all seriousness, we are so grateful for everything they did for us while we were guests in their home. We arrive in Las Vegas an hour and a half behind schedule, it seems the California traffic follows us wherever we go.
We are playing at a place called "The Beach", it is right off the strip and is an awesome venue. We are excited to be in Vegas, Chris is especially happy as he gets to catch up on his lap dances and contribute to his raging gambling habit. This is a great city.
After unloading our equipment at the venue we decide to walk to the buffet at the Stardust for a quick meal Vegas style. We all agreed that the food at the Stardust, though plentiful was less than stellar. Despite all warnings given by Chris and Will (and common sense), Nick and Tom took full advantage of the raw oyster bar.
With our belly's full and spirits high we head back to the Venue to play our set. The show went well, we played our hearts out and I must say we showed Vegas no mercy! Our rendition of Celion Dion's "your heart will go on" was the highlight of our set.
With a refreshing three ours of sleep at Will's brothers house (thanks Johnny!) we are off to Provo, Utah. Check back as it is bound to a hoot! Your boys, Nick, Chris, Will & Tom
Provo, UT & Flagstaff, AZ Oct 12th & 13th- Northern Expsoure:
Well, it..s now Saturday the 14th and we are killing time at the Campus Coffee bean in Flagstaff, Az. The same place we played last night. Everyone is having a great time on tour and we can..t wait to come home. Tom misses his family, Nick misses his girlfriend, Will misses his wife and Chris misses his Etch a Sketch.
We played at Muse Music in downtown Provo on Thursday and had a wonderful time. It was a cool little venue that was also a record shop. Will was able to finally locate his copy of Olivia Newton John..s Xanadu on vinyl. Original copy, not a re-release. It..s worth at least 3 bucks. The show went well. Chris had some family there for support and we had some old friends who used to live in Phoenix show up. It was good to see them. Later that night we stayed at Chris.. cousin Maureen..s home where she made us some sweet ass Carne Asada. She is the best cook ever. After slipping into a food coma, we all hit the hay. Nick spooned Will, Chris spooned his body pillow and Tom spooned a large dog named Chopper.
The next morning we headed out for Flagstaff, Az. While driving, in his best Ron Burgandy voice. Will exclaimed, ..This drive is long but it is beautiful... And he was right.
We arrive in Flag at about 6pm and checked into our motel. At this time we would like to thank the owner of the Saga Budget Inn for his amazing professional courtesy. What a pleasure to deal with. It was like he was an ex-Nazi in hiding trying to run a motel. We are on to you buddy.
That night we played our second to last show at the Coffee Bean to a full room. We were able to play with our good friends from Phoenix, Lesser Heroes. It was good to see them. The crowd was really responsive and supportive.
After the show we retired to the fabled Saga Inn where we slept like kings. Two beds+two towels+two bars of soap= heaven on earth.
Sedona, AZ Oct 15th-The TYS Vortex Tour:
Sedona, Az.......The TYS Vortex Tour.
Well, after haning out at the Coffee Bean for a few hours we made our way towards Sedona. It was another beautiful trip and yet it only took us a half an hour. We arrived there and stopped at a diner since we had most of the day to kill. We eneded up playing Golden Tee for what seemed like an eternity. Tom and Chris collectively scored 48 over par. Yeah, we're that bad.
After kicking the video game until it crumbled into about 1000 peices,. we headed over to Apizza Heaven where we dined on a deliscious pepperoni and black olive pizza. It was very tastey. Nick thought it was so good that he ordered a gallon of the sauce so that he could soak his underwear in it. Apparently, that is important to Nick.
Our good friends Kim, Wayne and Maddie along with Tom's parents, brother and other family members came up to Sedona to cheer on for our last show. It was great to see everyone there. Them being there was just the shot of good vibes that we needed to pick our tired asses up.
We arrived at the Oak Creek Brewery at around 7pm and assessed the place. It seemed like a very cool place although the band before was much much much quieter than us. We were afraid that the volume of our rocking would drive people away. On the contrary, it ended up being one of the best shows of the tour. They even screamed for us to play an encore. But of course being the a-holes that we are, we flipped off the crowd, spat on some girls and drove the neck of Tom's bass through a window right before storming out yelling that we would never play there again.
It has to have been the quickest week and a half ever. We are finally home and are now sleeping in our own beds. We had the time of our lives and we appreciate everything everyone did for us while we were out on the road.
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