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Potential to sub on a NorCal tour (long, as usual)
- Thread starter lildrgn
- Start date
A big part of this is that you're living the dream for a whole bunch of us! I have been fortunate to play a fair amount in various phases of my life, but one thing I never got to do is go on tour! (Probably a good thing for my tour mates lol)
Right now in Oakland fireworks are going off for the past couple of hours, and probably through the night - hope you're spending the night down there!
We are driving around SLO looking for dinner and a place to stay. Comical if it wasn't so sad.
No music content if anyone cares, if not, enjoy.
For an off day, it was pretty eventful. 24 hours later, we're still getting curveballs, but I'll get to that tomorrow.
The 4th of July started with me waking up in the Airbnb in a room by myself for the first time on tour. I went to the bathroom and as I was emptying myself, I heard a bang at the window and saw a dude standing there. There is a narrow alley between the bathroom window and the other building and I think he was just passing through. I averted my gaze as I felt it would've been weirder for me to have seen him seeing me. As it was, I only saw him; no eye contact was made.
After that, I lowered the blind and continued with a shower, etc, and planned on finding a laundromat as I was out of clean shirts. As luck would have it, there was one about .5 miles away, so I grabbed my Target bag of dirty laundry and my backpack and headed out.
Of course, being the 4th of July and being on the main drag at about 9:30, the street was starting to fill up with townsfolk lining up to see the parade. I headed south and weaved my way through people, but then realized I wanted coffee. There was a coffee shop nearby, but the line was out the door, so instead, I decided to go to a cafe for breakfast (3 pancakes, 2 strips bacon) to get coffee that way. Pretty tasty.
I continued to the laundry, which Google maps said was open, but I should have realized would be closed. And it was. So I took a street that was next to the ocean, headed to the beach, took off my shoes and walked back to Schooners. I sat at the beach behind and wrote some of yesterday's entry, before we got the boot from the Schooners crew, as it was time for the cleaner (Brendan's wife) to reset the rooms. We got the stink eye as we moved our stuff out to the van, and then a few minutes later, off we went, headed down the coast to SLO (San Luis Obispo).
Peter took a quick detour to drive through the Cal Tech Poly campus, as he's an alumni. Campus was closed due to the holiday so we did a quick pass through, then headed to the little downtown area.
Downtown SLO was pretty cool. Beautiful day for a walkaround and tour. We walked into the Mission there and took a quiet look around. Peter said it was built in the 1500's, which I'm not entirely sure about, but it was beautiful and I could feel the history of the surroundings.
We walked through to the creek that runs through town, then hit up a crazy record store called Captain Nemo's. There were records, CDs, tapes, old stereo equipment, games, audio/video supplies, comic books, toys, pretty much anything that a collector would want or need. I looked through some records and simply marveled at the logistics of keeping a business like that running. Like what about inventory, etc? It would likely take at least a week to count inventory in a place like that. Astounding.
We walked around a bit more, killing time as we had no gig that night and were hoping to stay in town with a friend. We looked for some lunch, but since it was a holiday, many places were closed and we didn't want to spend too much. So, as we did earlier in the tour, we stopped by Sprouts for their $4.99 sandwiches. Fairly tasty and cheap, we filled up and headed back out.
Took a few minutes to try to find a laundromat. I ran out of clean shirts and was wearing a gig shirt from the other night. We found one in SLO and it didn't have a change machine or an ATM. I asked a guy hanging there how much it cost to wash and dry a load, in Spanish, no less. It was more than we had, so we bounced and thought we might be able to do it at where we were staying, so we bounced.
Peter took us down to Los Osos and the beaches there. I forget the actual name of the place, something like Montaña de Osos or something like that. I put on some shorts and my Tevas and headed down to the beach and water, dipping my toes in the ocean. The water was pretty cool, so I didn't stay too long. Lots of really smooth and thin rocks on the beach and I marveled a bit at how long they had to be tumbling in the ocean to get that way. I found a few rocks for Marci and the kids and put them away.
We jumped back in the van and headed towards the sand dunes where people will cardboard surf. It was super tall and the sand was so fine that every step up resulted in half a step down. I have not been able to exercise on this tour (which is a major bummer; I haven't gone this long without running for years), but climbing up that hill was pretty intense. We got to the top and were all sucking wind, it was pretty funny.
Off to the side were some college age kids, like 7 guys, 4 girls. The guys were all super chiseled and fit. They were playing beer pong, shirts off, pecs and six packs glistening. They had a couple cases of Coors Light and we all enjoyed being on that dune above the ocean.
After listening to Peter tell some funny stories and jokes, we saw some park rangers heading towards us. The kids didn't see them at first, but when they did, wow, they got moving. A couple kids grabbed the cases of beer and the empties and ran down the hill to get them out of sight. They then continued acting like nothing happened. A few minutes later, one ranger made it up and said hi to us. He went to the kids and was like Officer Friendly, "How's it going, guys? (fine) Whatcha up to? (hangin out) Anyone got any beer? (no officer)." And then Bad Cop came up. She stood by a beach blanket at the top the hill and asked, "Anyone over 21 here? (one raised hand) And no one has any beer? (no, Officer)"
Then Officer Bad Cop bends down, picks up a beer can and says, "Then what's this? C'mon, guys, this isn't my first time up on the dunes seeing people play beer pong." The rangers then proceeded to make the kids go grab the beer and then made the two kids over 21 (there was another one) dump out all the remaining cans. Then they got the lecture, which I couldn't really hear due to wind, but you get the gist.
We hung out a bit longer, then headed down the hill, where we got back into the van and made our way back into SLO for dinner. Of course, by now most restaurants were closed, so after driving around some more, we decided once again, Sprouts it was. One more sandwich, this time turkey, and still, quite good.
While ordering sandwiches, I told Peter about this blog and how I've been posting my escapades at TalkBass and how some readers have asked for my Venmo to help out. That if he saw some weird instances of income, that was why. Turns out, as we were waiting, one TB'er named Harry sent over a generous donation. That was super cool and totally unexpected, but very much appreciated. I sent Harry a letter of gratitude and we ate our sammies and then all called our ladies from the Sprouts parking lot.
On this trip, I've been busy with the day to day stuff and it's really when I talk to Marci that I realize how much I miss her and the kids. They're doing their thing and it is what it is, but I miss being part of that quite a bit. We talked about their kayaking trip in Bellevue, about how Kody is after getting in a through-the-fence bark fight the other day, about the heat. The day to day stuff I'm missing. It was great. I wished her a good night and we went off to find our lodging.
Which turned out to be an apartment of a young woman named Misty. She was at our Schooners show with her friend/boyfriend(?) Nathan, who we are playing a show with in Oakland. Her apartment consisted of a living area, a loft bedroom and bathroom. Nathan was also staying there and it made for a packed house. I got the couch, Peter got an air mattress and the other dudes got the floor.
We all sat around for a bit, and then at around 11:30-12:00 (? I can't remember), Simon and I turned in for the night. I had a hard time falling asleep, and then when Peter, Miles, Misty and Nathan came back in, talking, playing music, then turning on the stereo, well, it made sleeping even harder.
It must be a generational thing, with these people in their late 20s and early 30s simply staying up and chatting about all things. Also, altering their realities with various substances. I'm not judging, to each their own. They were enjoying themselves reasonably, but yeah, it was challenging to try to sleep. I faded in and out (mainly in) for the next few hours, until about 3, I think, when they finally quieted down.
For whatever reason (and it was her place), Misty had music playing upstairs in the background and though it wasn't too loud, it was a little distracting. Miles fell asleep almost immediately and started snoring. And then Nathan was also there, on the floor next to me and either he kept bumping the couch or hitting it on purpose to stop me from snoring. So it was pretty uncomfortable until after 4 or so, when I think I started sleeping a little bit.
I'm hoping accommodations are better tonight. TBD.
Quick notes:
For an off day, it was pretty eventful. 24 hours later, we're still getting curveballs, but I'll get to that tomorrow.
The 4th of July started with me waking up in the Airbnb in a room by myself for the first time on tour. I went to the bathroom and as I was emptying myself, I heard a bang at the window and saw a dude standing there. There is a narrow alley between the bathroom window and the other building and I think he was just passing through. I averted my gaze as I felt it would've been weirder for me to have seen him seeing me. As it was, I only saw him; no eye contact was made.
After that, I lowered the blind and continued with a shower, etc, and planned on finding a laundromat as I was out of clean shirts. As luck would have it, there was one about .5 miles away, so I grabbed my Target bag of dirty laundry and my backpack and headed out.
Of course, being the 4th of July and being on the main drag at about 9:30, the street was starting to fill up with townsfolk lining up to see the parade. I headed south and weaved my way through people, but then realized I wanted coffee. There was a coffee shop nearby, but the line was out the door, so instead, I decided to go to a cafe for breakfast (3 pancakes, 2 strips bacon) to get coffee that way. Pretty tasty.
I continued to the laundry, which Google maps said was open, but I should have realized would be closed. And it was. So I took a street that was next to the ocean, headed to the beach, took off my shoes and walked back to Schooners. I sat at the beach behind and wrote some of yesterday's entry, before we got the boot from the Schooners crew, as it was time for the cleaner (Brendan's wife) to reset the rooms. We got the stink eye as we moved our stuff out to the van, and then a few minutes later, off we went, headed down the coast to SLO (San Luis Obispo).
Peter took a quick detour to drive through the Cal Tech Poly campus, as he's an alumni. Campus was closed due to the holiday so we did a quick pass through, then headed to the little downtown area.
Downtown SLO was pretty cool. Beautiful day for a walkaround and tour. We walked into the Mission there and took a quiet look around. Peter said it was built in the 1500's, which I'm not entirely sure about, but it was beautiful and I could feel the history of the surroundings.
We walked through to the creek that runs through town, then hit up a crazy record store called Captain Nemo's. There were records, CDs, tapes, old stereo equipment, games, audio/video supplies, comic books, toys, pretty much anything that a collector would want or need. I looked through some records and simply marveled at the logistics of keeping a business like that running. Like what about inventory, etc? It would likely take at least a week to count inventory in a place like that. Astounding.
We walked around a bit more, killing time as we had no gig that night and were hoping to stay in town with a friend. We looked for some lunch, but since it was a holiday, many places were closed and we didn't want to spend too much. So, as we did earlier in the tour, we stopped by Sprouts for their $4.99 sandwiches. Fairly tasty and cheap, we filled up and headed back out.
Took a few minutes to try to find a laundromat. I ran out of clean shirts and was wearing a gig shirt from the other night. We found one in SLO and it didn't have a change machine or an ATM. I asked a guy hanging there how much it cost to wash and dry a load, in Spanish, no less. It was more than we had, so we bounced and thought we might be able to do it at where we were staying, so we bounced.
Peter took us down to Los Osos and the beaches there. I forget the actual name of the place, something like Montaña de Osos or something like that. I put on some shorts and my Tevas and headed down to the beach and water, dipping my toes in the ocean. The water was pretty cool, so I didn't stay too long. Lots of really smooth and thin rocks on the beach and I marveled a bit at how long they had to be tumbling in the ocean to get that way. I found a few rocks for Marci and the kids and put them away.
We jumped back in the van and headed towards the sand dunes where people will cardboard surf. It was super tall and the sand was so fine that every step up resulted in half a step down. I have not been able to exercise on this tour (which is a major bummer; I haven't gone this long without running for years), but climbing up that hill was pretty intense. We got to the top and were all sucking wind, it was pretty funny.
Off to the side were some college age kids, like 7 guys, 4 girls. The guys were all super chiseled and fit. They were playing beer pong, shirts off, pecs and six packs glistening. They had a couple cases of Coors Light and we all enjoyed being on that dune above the ocean.
After listening to Peter tell some funny stories and jokes, we saw some park rangers heading towards us. The kids didn't see them at first, but when they did, wow, they got moving. A couple kids grabbed the cases of beer and the empties and ran down the hill to get them out of sight. They then continued acting like nothing happened. A few minutes later, one ranger made it up and said hi to us. He went to the kids and was like Officer Friendly, "How's it going, guys? (fine) Whatcha up to? (hangin out) Anyone got any beer? (no officer)." And then Bad Cop came up. She stood by a beach blanket at the top the hill and asked, "Anyone over 21 here? (one raised hand) And no one has any beer? (no, Officer)"
Then Officer Bad Cop bends down, picks up a beer can and says, "Then what's this? C'mon, guys, this isn't my first time up on the dunes seeing people play beer pong." The rangers then proceeded to make the kids go grab the beer and then made the two kids over 21 (there was another one) dump out all the remaining cans. Then they got the lecture, which I couldn't really hear due to wind, but you get the gist.
We hung out a bit longer, then headed down the hill, where we got back into the van and made our way back into SLO for dinner. Of course, by now most restaurants were closed, so after driving around some more, we decided once again, Sprouts it was. One more sandwich, this time turkey, and still, quite good.
While ordering sandwiches, I told Peter about this blog and how I've been posting my escapades at TalkBass and how some readers have asked for my Venmo to help out. That if he saw some weird instances of income, that was why. Turns out, as we were waiting, one TB'er named Harry sent over a generous donation. That was super cool and totally unexpected, but very much appreciated. I sent Harry a letter of gratitude and we ate our sammies and then all called our ladies from the Sprouts parking lot.
On this trip, I've been busy with the day to day stuff and it's really when I talk to Marci that I realize how much I miss her and the kids. They're doing their thing and it is what it is, but I miss being part of that quite a bit. We talked about their kayaking trip in Bellevue, about how Kody is after getting in a through-the-fence bark fight the other day, about the heat. The day to day stuff I'm missing. It was great. I wished her a good night and we went off to find our lodging.
Which turned out to be an apartment of a young woman named Misty. She was at our Schooners show with her friend/boyfriend(?) Nathan, who we are playing a show with in Oakland. Her apartment consisted of a living area, a loft bedroom and bathroom. Nathan was also staying there and it made for a packed house. I got the couch, Peter got an air mattress and the other dudes got the floor.
We all sat around for a bit, and then at around 11:30-12:00 (? I can't remember), Simon and I turned in for the night. I had a hard time falling asleep, and then when Peter, Miles, Misty and Nathan came back in, talking, playing music, then turning on the stereo, well, it made sleeping even harder.
It must be a generational thing, with these people in their late 20s and early 30s simply staying up and chatting about all things. Also, altering their realities with various substances. I'm not judging, to each their own. They were enjoying themselves reasonably, but yeah, it was challenging to try to sleep. I faded in and out (mainly in) for the next few hours, until about 3, I think, when they finally quieted down.
For whatever reason (and it was her place), Misty had music playing upstairs in the background and though it wasn't too loud, it was a little distracting. Miles fell asleep almost immediately and started snoring. And then Nathan was also there, on the floor next to me and either he kept bumping the couch or hitting it on purpose to stop me from snoring. So it was pretty uncomfortable until after 4 or so, when I think I started sleeping a little bit.
I'm hoping accommodations are better tonight. TBD.
Quick notes:
- I keep forgetting to mention that I think I packed too much. Bass, bass accessories, rolling suitcase, backpack, giant duffel. It's possible I can get away w/o the rolling suitcase next time. Especially after seeing what the other dudes have packed. Need to simplify.
- As much as I enjoyed having the day off, I did miss playing. That experience is always fun.
- I stopped at the SLO Donut Company because I thought there was a Starbucks nearby. Donuts won out. I love donuts.
- I've been playing without my Zoom B2 Four the past few gigs for simplicities sake. But then I don't have a tuner. I was a little out of tune the other night, so I'll be using the pedal again.
Day 8 recap:
Woke up in a cramped apartment in SLO and grabbed a shower. Despite the difficulties sleeping the night before, I didn't feel too terrible. Next up was laundry and Misty was nice enough to allow us to use her facilities and some detergent. We also packed up the van with Nathan, as he was traveling with us to Oakland. He was a one-man show for the gig, with a keyboard amp, two keyboards and guitars, a pedalboard and a mixer. And a music stand. But we have a big van so in everything went.
We got a late enough start and had to wait for laundry to dry, so we headed back into SLO for what amounted to brunch at a Cajun café. I got an omelet and the other dudes got some skillet that looked incredible. I wanted a less unique breakfast, but I enjoyed what I got.
Said skillet thing.
After the food, we headed back to the apartment and Miles and I speed-folded our clothes. We dropped Nathan's car off at his place, then it was north to Oakland. The drive was about 3 hours or so and I napped a bit. I finally also busted out my earbuds. I've been not using them because I wanted to be present for convos, but at this point, I've heard most everything. But mainly, I'm getting tired of the same 4-5 CDs in the rotation (Neil Young, Tom Petty, the Who, the Beach Boys, David Alan Coe, and more Neil Young).
Listening to my podcasts was a nice touch. Of all things, I'm listening to KJ All Day, which is KJ Wright's podcast about football and his Seahawks days. It's really insightful and entertaining to hear his stories. They're not just about reliving his glory days, but about how he came up, who mentored him, how he's helping others, etc. It's cool to hear a human side to a football player, the fact that he's great on the podcast is a bonus.
I also have in my rotation the Smartless podcast, but the one I love the most is Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend. I started listening to that shortly after it started and can confidently say I've heard them all. And I'm not necessarily a huge Conan fan. I enjoy his humor, but sometimes it can be a little too "try too hard." That said, I do love his sidekicks/friends, Sona and Matt. I really enjoy their rapport and interactions.
CONAF does have Harrison Ford as his latest guest and I'm saving that for the ride back home, as that's gonna be our longest drive. I'm assuming there are no spoilers for the new Indiana Jones movie, as I haven't seen that yet and it will be my priority when I get home. It will be awesome to hear him on that podcast, so I'm looking forward to that.
We arrived in Oakland and it was highly reminiscent of a less grungy Pioneer Square. Some of it also reminded me of the Mission District from SF, only with less people and sidewalk poop. Me, Peter and Nathan walked around and checked some things out before we headed back to load into the club.
As with the Milk Bar and Make Out Room, the Golden Bull (apparently owned by Billy Joe Armstrong of Green Day) is another shotgun style club, with a long room with a bar on the left and a stage at the end. One difference this place had was a staircase at the back of the stage that led to a nice little green room for the bands. That was a nice touch.
After we loaded in, I hung out up there and tried to get a few Zs in as Nathan was setting up and sound checking. Apparently he did the trick as I did fall asleep and as he was performing, I was trapped upstairs. I didn't want to distract by going down during his show, so I caught up on some computer stuff upstairs and chilled.
From what I could hear, Nathan had some cool backing tracks that he created with looping pedals and the like, and he played guitar and sang over the top of them. Very cool vibe and very melodic and hip. I could hear an appreciative crowd and when I went down to get set for our set, saw about 10-15 people in there.
I used my pedal that night, mainly for the tuner aspect of things. Sort of a security blanket, but better to have than not. I'm happy to say that I got through the first two songs with no bad notes, a first for this tour. In fact, I don't think I had many bad spots, getting through the entire set with a good performance. I got a bit bouncy and demonstrative on our last song, "So Many Miles," and then we finished. Some nice words from another bassist in the crowd, mainly about my singing. I do some backing vocals on a few songs. The parts are fairly simple note and rhythm-wise, but lyrically, I'm stumbling over some of Peter's words.
The last band was the Canterbury Bells, a four piece of dudes that looked like they stepped straight out of a Warped Tour pre-show opening act. The music was chill and they sang well, but it seemed like they were college freshmen (they were not) playing their first show. Decent players, great harmonies, songs need some seasoning.
The Canterbury Bells
After the show, we packed out, grabbed a pizza next door, then headed to Peter's old college roommate's place in Benicia. I hoped it was a house, but it was an apartment, but larger than the one in SLO. That said, we still all packed into the living room, where I tried sacking out early, but had to listen to my mates laughing and talking until about 2am. More snoring and shuffling about, but eventually, sleep came, and that was that.
Quick notes:
Woke up in a cramped apartment in SLO and grabbed a shower. Despite the difficulties sleeping the night before, I didn't feel too terrible. Next up was laundry and Misty was nice enough to allow us to use her facilities and some detergent. We also packed up the van with Nathan, as he was traveling with us to Oakland. He was a one-man show for the gig, with a keyboard amp, two keyboards and guitars, a pedalboard and a mixer. And a music stand. But we have a big van so in everything went.
We got a late enough start and had to wait for laundry to dry, so we headed back into SLO for what amounted to brunch at a Cajun café. I got an omelet and the other dudes got some skillet that looked incredible. I wanted a less unique breakfast, but I enjoyed what I got.
Said skillet thing.
After the food, we headed back to the apartment and Miles and I speed-folded our clothes. We dropped Nathan's car off at his place, then it was north to Oakland. The drive was about 3 hours or so and I napped a bit. I finally also busted out my earbuds. I've been not using them because I wanted to be present for convos, but at this point, I've heard most everything. But mainly, I'm getting tired of the same 4-5 CDs in the rotation (Neil Young, Tom Petty, the Who, the Beach Boys, David Alan Coe, and more Neil Young).
Listening to my podcasts was a nice touch. Of all things, I'm listening to KJ All Day, which is KJ Wright's podcast about football and his Seahawks days. It's really insightful and entertaining to hear his stories. They're not just about reliving his glory days, but about how he came up, who mentored him, how he's helping others, etc. It's cool to hear a human side to a football player, the fact that he's great on the podcast is a bonus.
I also have in my rotation the Smartless podcast, but the one I love the most is Conan O'Brien Needs A Friend. I started listening to that shortly after it started and can confidently say I've heard them all. And I'm not necessarily a huge Conan fan. I enjoy his humor, but sometimes it can be a little too "try too hard." That said, I do love his sidekicks/friends, Sona and Matt. I really enjoy their rapport and interactions.
CONAF does have Harrison Ford as his latest guest and I'm saving that for the ride back home, as that's gonna be our longest drive. I'm assuming there are no spoilers for the new Indiana Jones movie, as I haven't seen that yet and it will be my priority when I get home. It will be awesome to hear him on that podcast, so I'm looking forward to that.
We arrived in Oakland and it was highly reminiscent of a less grungy Pioneer Square. Some of it also reminded me of the Mission District from SF, only with less people and sidewalk poop. Me, Peter and Nathan walked around and checked some things out before we headed back to load into the club.
As with the Milk Bar and Make Out Room, the Golden Bull (apparently owned by Billy Joe Armstrong of Green Day) is another shotgun style club, with a long room with a bar on the left and a stage at the end. One difference this place had was a staircase at the back of the stage that led to a nice little green room for the bands. That was a nice touch.
After we loaded in, I hung out up there and tried to get a few Zs in as Nathan was setting up and sound checking. Apparently he did the trick as I did fall asleep and as he was performing, I was trapped upstairs. I didn't want to distract by going down during his show, so I caught up on some computer stuff upstairs and chilled.
From what I could hear, Nathan had some cool backing tracks that he created with looping pedals and the like, and he played guitar and sang over the top of them. Very cool vibe and very melodic and hip. I could hear an appreciative crowd and when I went down to get set for our set, saw about 10-15 people in there.
I used my pedal that night, mainly for the tuner aspect of things. Sort of a security blanket, but better to have than not. I'm happy to say that I got through the first two songs with no bad notes, a first for this tour. In fact, I don't think I had many bad spots, getting through the entire set with a good performance. I got a bit bouncy and demonstrative on our last song, "So Many Miles," and then we finished. Some nice words from another bassist in the crowd, mainly about my singing. I do some backing vocals on a few songs. The parts are fairly simple note and rhythm-wise, but lyrically, I'm stumbling over some of Peter's words.
The last band was the Canterbury Bells, a four piece of dudes that looked like they stepped straight out of a Warped Tour pre-show opening act. The music was chill and they sang well, but it seemed like they were college freshmen (they were not) playing their first show. Decent players, great harmonies, songs need some seasoning.
The Canterbury Bells
After the show, we packed out, grabbed a pizza next door, then headed to Peter's old college roommate's place in Benicia. I hoped it was a house, but it was an apartment, but larger than the one in SLO. That said, we still all packed into the living room, where I tried sacking out early, but had to listen to my mates laughing and talking until about 2am. More snoring and shuffling about, but eventually, sleep came, and that was that.
Quick notes:
- DT Oakland seemed nice enough but people kept telling me it was not a great spot. What I saw seemed pretty cool. Fairly vibrant, but not a lot of people on a Wednesday night.
- Miles and I got dinner at a place called Oakland Street Food and got to watch some Mariners baseball as they were in SF playing the Giants. Sadly, the M's lost 2-0.
- Stopped at a gas station for a quick break. Inside were a couple of circulars with bumper stickers. Mixed in with all the aggressively conservative stickers was one that said something like, "Be Nice" or "Spread Joy" or something ironic like that.
Which one of these stickers doesn't belong?
- I did not know Oakland was home to both Bandcamp and Pandora; I saw offices for both when driving around.
- Oh! The bassist for the Canterbury Bells had a semi-relic'ed Squier P-Bass that sounded gnarly. Overdrive and a little grungy, reminded me of the bass tone on the "Mrs. Robinson" cover that the Lemonheads did in the late 90's. The sound guy told me that the bassist plugged into a Moog synth on stage that he had brought. After the show, I asked him about it and he said he basically used the Moog as a filter/preamp and sent the signal to FOH for amplification. Sounded really cool.
Tour day 9 recap:
Woke up on another floor and then took a walk to town with Miles to get coffee at a cool little (surprising large) shop in town. Cool and cloudy and breezy, it felt good after being in the stuffy apartment. We all got showers, and then headed out for Morro Bay.
Coffee shop, $7 caramel apple danish!
Where we stayed in Benicia from behind.
As the road to the 1 (or 101, as always, can't remember, don't know) was closed due to landslides, we had to take the less exciting drive inland. Pretty uneventful, stopped for Subway for a 6" Italian sub.
More frickin' Neil Young on the drive. Granted, we only have so many CDs, but we definitely have more than Neil Young. But, I'm not driving, so I'm not running the audio. Plus, I have earbuds, so more podcasts for me.
We made to Morro Bay, which is just a few minutes south of where we were a few days ago, in Cayucos. MB's defining feature, to me, least, is the giant rock just off the shore. Like Jurassic Park size rock. It's really prehistoric and cool. And then just next to it is an old nuclear plant with three tall smokestacks pointing into the sky.
Uniquely named Morro Rock, I'm told.
I loaded my stuff and took a walk down to the water and got a closer look at the rock. Took some IG videos and then headed back to the Siren, where we were playing. When we left last week for the tour, I brought Peter's American Fender Jazz bass as a backup to my bass. I've sort of regretted bringing it as it's one more piece of gear we need to move around. I decided to play it last night to sort of justify its existence.
Simon getting dialed in.
The J has a TSA rated hard case and the case itself is really nice, crushed electric blue interior. The bass itself is quite nice, with gold hardware, a light rosewood neck and nice rounded frets. Shaun had played it at the Belltown Yacht Club a few weeks ago and it was a little grimy, so I got some cleaner and wiped it off and played it at sound check. I busted out the pedal as well for tuning/muting capabilities, so we were all good there.
The J.
At soundcheck, Kip was our sound guy. He was the best sound person I've ever worked with in nearly 30 years of playing out. He had all our names typed into his iPad mixing software, which was cool. He was mentoring a dude named Ryan and the patience and guidance he gave him was really nice to see. Kip directed us individually, and then we checked as a group, he asked us again about our needs and then we let the next band play. Just a pro, this guy.
During the Bogeys sound check, we got drink AND food tickets, which was a delight. Though I'm being paid, I'm also using it to supplement some of the stuff at home. I had to pay Haley's first and last month's rent for her place, so things are getting a little tight. My unemployment is late going in this week, so despite having enough to cover things, I'm not used to having our funds drop below a certain number. I wasn't looking forward to buying dinner, but the Siren provided, so that was excellent. Pork belly tacos for me, and they were quite tasty.
The Bogeys from outside; I was on the phone with Haley.
Pork belly tacos, so goooood.
The Bogeys got up there, and they may have been the friendliest band I've met in a long time. They all got up and introduced themselves to us. Daniel on drums, Scott on guitar, AJ on vocals and guitar, and Nathan from yesterday, on bass. They did a surf/jam/rock thing and it was pretty cool. AJ was a young skinny kid that wore a toque the whole time; don't know how he could do it, but he did, despite the hot lights on stage.
Scott, Daniel, AJ (in white), Nathan (L-R).
After they finished, we jumped on and did the same set as we did in Oakland. I played pretty well, but not as well as Oakland. Sound on stage sounded great, and though I'd rather play THE HOG, the Jazz performed admirably. When I'd play on the bridge pickup, guess what? It sounded like a Jazz. I think it could use some setup; the sustain was a little lacking, but overall, it felt good, and the nice thin Jazz neck was a delight to wrap my hand around.
We ended our set and finished tearing down. Simon and I sat off the stage and AJ approached and said he had a place for us to stay! He was staying at a friend's house and was willing to put us up there, where he had 3 bedrooms and a couch. Incredible! We jumped in the van and followed AJ to his place up in the hills in Arroyo Grande.
I was excited to sleep in a quiet room, but ended up on the couch in the living room. But before that, I hung out with the crew for a bit, had my first (and only) alcoholic beverage on the trip so far, prepared thoughtfully by AJ (only featuring 3/4 shot of vodka). It was tasty enough and no side effects. We all engaged in some conversation, and then it was time for bed for me (around 2am). In went the earplugs, the eye mask (in this case, a bandana I brought along), and that was that.
Quick notes:
Woke up on another floor and then took a walk to town with Miles to get coffee at a cool little (surprising large) shop in town. Cool and cloudy and breezy, it felt good after being in the stuffy apartment. We all got showers, and then headed out for Morro Bay.
Coffee shop, $7 caramel apple danish!
Where we stayed in Benicia from behind.
As the road to the 1 (or 101, as always, can't remember, don't know) was closed due to landslides, we had to take the less exciting drive inland. Pretty uneventful, stopped for Subway for a 6" Italian sub.
More frickin' Neil Young on the drive. Granted, we only have so many CDs, but we definitely have more than Neil Young. But, I'm not driving, so I'm not running the audio. Plus, I have earbuds, so more podcasts for me.
We made to Morro Bay, which is just a few minutes south of where we were a few days ago, in Cayucos. MB's defining feature, to me, least, is the giant rock just off the shore. Like Jurassic Park size rock. It's really prehistoric and cool. And then just next to it is an old nuclear plant with three tall smokestacks pointing into the sky.
Uniquely named Morro Rock, I'm told.
I loaded my stuff and took a walk down to the water and got a closer look at the rock. Took some IG videos and then headed back to the Siren, where we were playing. When we left last week for the tour, I brought Peter's American Fender Jazz bass as a backup to my bass. I've sort of regretted bringing it as it's one more piece of gear we need to move around. I decided to play it last night to sort of justify its existence.
Simon getting dialed in.
The J has a TSA rated hard case and the case itself is really nice, crushed electric blue interior. The bass itself is quite nice, with gold hardware, a light rosewood neck and nice rounded frets. Shaun had played it at the Belltown Yacht Club a few weeks ago and it was a little grimy, so I got some cleaner and wiped it off and played it at sound check. I busted out the pedal as well for tuning/muting capabilities, so we were all good there.
The J.
At soundcheck, Kip was our sound guy. He was the best sound person I've ever worked with in nearly 30 years of playing out. He had all our names typed into his iPad mixing software, which was cool. He was mentoring a dude named Ryan and the patience and guidance he gave him was really nice to see. Kip directed us individually, and then we checked as a group, he asked us again about our needs and then we let the next band play. Just a pro, this guy.
During the Bogeys sound check, we got drink AND food tickets, which was a delight. Though I'm being paid, I'm also using it to supplement some of the stuff at home. I had to pay Haley's first and last month's rent for her place, so things are getting a little tight. My unemployment is late going in this week, so despite having enough to cover things, I'm not used to having our funds drop below a certain number. I wasn't looking forward to buying dinner, but the Siren provided, so that was excellent. Pork belly tacos for me, and they were quite tasty.
The Bogeys from outside; I was on the phone with Haley.
Pork belly tacos, so goooood.
The Bogeys got up there, and they may have been the friendliest band I've met in a long time. They all got up and introduced themselves to us. Daniel on drums, Scott on guitar, AJ on vocals and guitar, and Nathan from yesterday, on bass. They did a surf/jam/rock thing and it was pretty cool. AJ was a young skinny kid that wore a toque the whole time; don't know how he could do it, but he did, despite the hot lights on stage.
Scott, Daniel, AJ (in white), Nathan (L-R).
After they finished, we jumped on and did the same set as we did in Oakland. I played pretty well, but not as well as Oakland. Sound on stage sounded great, and though I'd rather play THE HOG, the Jazz performed admirably. When I'd play on the bridge pickup, guess what? It sounded like a Jazz. I think it could use some setup; the sustain was a little lacking, but overall, it felt good, and the nice thin Jazz neck was a delight to wrap my hand around.
We ended our set and finished tearing down. Simon and I sat off the stage and AJ approached and said he had a place for us to stay! He was staying at a friend's house and was willing to put us up there, where he had 3 bedrooms and a couch. Incredible! We jumped in the van and followed AJ to his place up in the hills in Arroyo Grande.
I was excited to sleep in a quiet room, but ended up on the couch in the living room. But before that, I hung out with the crew for a bit, had my first (and only) alcoholic beverage on the trip so far, prepared thoughtfully by AJ (only featuring 3/4 shot of vodka). It was tasty enough and no side effects. We all engaged in some conversation, and then it was time for bed for me (around 2am). In went the earplugs, the eye mask (in this case, a bandana I brought along), and that was that.
Quick notes:
- Even though I totally overpacked, I sort of wish I brought a light jacket. All these coastal towns are chilly and breezy and though I have a hoodie, I'm thinking of having Alison bring me a light jacket of Todd's when she comes to LA tonight.
- Kip really was good. Super nice too. He's touring with a group in August called "Prog-ject" which is a bunch of prog dudes traveling the country for 3 months. He'll be at the Triple Door then, but I doubt I'll go. That said, he really went out of his way to make us sound good.
Kip and me.
- Every time I come to California, I ask myself, "could I/we live here?" I like it enough, and there are beautiful parts that would be cool to be a part of. Just being able to walk from Ryan's apartment in Benicia to a coffee shop within 5 minutes was really neat. I've only ever lived in two places, and neither place allowed any sort of walkability to anything.
- Hoping Peter pays me today. He's been paying every other day, every two shows, but after Oakland and Morro Bay, no payment yet. I'm guessing he'll Venmo after tonight's show, which we think will be decently attended.
- Still having fun, but definitely missing the routine of home. Can't wait to get back next week!
- Robb texted me the other day. There's a big show happening on Saturday, 7/8, where Cass will be playing with Love Battery. Stag, the headliner, has to back out for medical reasons and they asked PITO to play. Unfortunately, I can't do it so we're not doing it.
Next time, I hope!!
Just to help out: The 1 is the smaller roadway on the coast and the 101 is the larger inland highway. In some areas they are one and the same.Tour day 9 recap:
Woke up on another floor and then took a walk to town with Miles to get coffee at a cool little (surprising large) shop in town. Cool and cloudy and breezy, it felt good after being in the stuffy apartment. We all got showers, and then headed out for Morro Bay.
Coffee shop, $7 caramel apple danish!
Where we stayed in Benicia from behind.
As the road to the 1 (or 101, as always, can't remember, don't know) was closed due to landslides, we had to take the less exciting drive inland. Pretty uneventful, stopped for Subway for a 6" Italian sub.
More frickin' Neil Young on the drive. Granted, we only have so many CDs, but we definitely have more than Neil Young. But, I'm not driving, so I'm not running the audio. Plus, I have earbuds, so more podcasts for me.
We made to Morro Bay, which is just a few minutes south of where we were a few days ago, in Cayucos. MB's defining feature, to me, least, is the giant rock just off the shore. Like Jurassic Park size rock. It's really prehistoric and cool. And then just next to it is an old nuclear plant with three tall smokestacks pointing into the sky.
Uniquely named Morro Rock, I'm told.
I loaded my stuff and took a walk down to the water and got a closer look at the rock. Took some IG videos and then headed back to the Siren, where we were playing. When we left last week for the tour, I brought Peter's American Fender Jazz bass as a backup to my bass. I've sort of regretted bringing it as it's one more piece of gear we need to move around. I decided to play it last night to sort of justify its existence.
Simon getting dialed in.
The J has a TSA rated hard case and the case itself is really nice, crushed electric blue interior. The bass itself is quite nice, with gold hardware, a light rosewood neck and nice rounded frets. Shaun had played it at the Belltown Yacht Club a few weeks ago and it was a little grimy, so I got some cleaner and wiped it off and played it at sound check. I busted out the pedal as well for tuning/muting capabilities, so we were all good there.
The J.
At soundcheck, Kip was our sound guy. He was the best sound person I've ever worked with in nearly 30 years of playing out. He had all our names typed into his iPad mixing software, which was cool. He was mentoring a dude named Ryan and the patience and guidance he gave him was really nice to see. Kip directed us individually, and then we checked as a group, he asked us again about our needs and then we let the next band play. Just a pro, this guy.
During the Bogeys sound check, we got drink AND food tickets, which was a delight. Though I'm being paid, I'm also using it to supplement some of the stuff at home. I had to pay Haley's first and last month's rent for her place, so things are getting a little tight. My unemployment is late going in this week, so despite having enough to cover things, I'm not used to having our funds drop below a certain number. I wasn't looking forward to buying dinner, but the Siren provided, so that was excellent. Pork belly tacos for me, and they were quite tasty.
The Bogeys from outside; I was on the phone with Haley.
Pork belly tacos, so goooood.
The Bogeys got up there, and they may have been the friendliest band I've met in a long time. They all got up and introduced themselves to us. Daniel on drums, Scott on guitar, AJ on vocals and guitar, and Nathan from yesterday, on bass. They did a surf/jam/rock thing and it was pretty cool. AJ was a young skinny kid that wore a toque the whole time; don't know how he could do it, but he did, despite the hot lights on stage.
Scott, Daniel, AJ (in white), Nathan (L-R).
After they finished, we jumped on and did the same set as we did in Oakland. I played pretty well, but not as well as Oakland. Sound on stage sounded great, and though I'd rather play THE HOG, the Jazz performed admirably. When I'd play on the bridge pickup, guess what? It sounded like a Jazz. I think it could use some setup; the sustain was a little lacking, but overall, it felt good, and the nice thin Jazz neck was a delight to wrap my hand around.
We ended our set and finished tearing down. Simon and I sat off the stage and AJ approached and said he had a place for us to stay! He was staying at a friend's house and was willing to put us up there, where he had 3 bedrooms and a couch. Incredible! We jumped in the van and followed AJ to his place up in the hills in Arroyo Grande.
I was excited to sleep in a quiet room, but ended up on the couch in the living room. But before that, I hung out with the crew for a bit, had my first (and only) alcoholic beverage on the trip so far, prepared thoughtfully by AJ (only featuring 3/4 shot of vodka). It was tasty enough and no side effects. We all engaged in some conversation, and then it was time for bed for me (around 2am). In went the earplugs, the eye mask (in this case, a bandana I brought along), and that was that.
Quick notes:
Up next, something called Non Plus Ultra, at a secret location in Los Angeles. Apparently we are staying in a couple of Airstream trailers owned by the niece of a member of Soundgarden. Hope that works for us!!
- Even though I totally overpacked, I sort of wish I brought a light jacket. All these coastal towns are chilly and breezy and though I have a hoodie, I'm thinking of having Alison bring me a light jacket of Todd's when she comes to LA tonight.
- Kip really was good. Super nice too. He's touring with a group in August called "Prog-ject" which is a bunch of prog dudes traveling the country for 3 months. He'll be at the Triple Door then, but I doubt I'll go. That said, he really went out of his way to make us sound good.
Kip and me.
- Every time I come to California, I ask myself, "could I/we live here?" I like it enough, and there are beautiful parts that would be cool to be a part of. Just being able to walk from Ryan's apartment in Benicia to a coffee shop within 5 minutes was really neat. I've only ever lived in two places, and neither place allowed any sort of walkability to anything.
- Hoping Peter pays me today. He's been paying every other day, every two shows, but after Oakland and Morro Bay, no payment yet. I'm guessing he'll Venmo after tonight's show, which we think will be decently attended.
- Still having fun, but definitely missing the routine of home. Can't wait to get back next week!
- Robb texted me the other day. There's a big show happening on Saturday, 7/8, where Cass will be playing with Love Battery. Stag, the headliner, has to back out for medical reasons and they asked PITO to play. Unfortunately, I can't do it so we're not doing it.
Last edited:
Tour day 9 recap:
Woke up on another floor and then took a walk to town with Miles to get coffee at a cool little (surprising large) shop in town. Cool and cloudy and breezy, it felt good after being in the stuffy apartment. We all got showers, and then headed out for Morro Bay.
Coffee shop, $7 caramel apple danish!
Where we stayed in Benicia from behind.
As the road to the 1 (or 101, as always, can't remember, don't know) was closed due to landslides, we had to take the less exciting drive inland. Pretty uneventful, stopped for Subway for a 6" Italian sub.
More frickin' Neil Young on the drive. Granted, we only have so many CDs, but we definitely have more than Neil Young. But, I'm not driving, so I'm not running the audio. Plus, I have earbuds, so more podcasts for me.
We made to Morro Bay, which is just a few minutes south of where we were a few days ago, in Cayucos. MB's defining feature, to me, least, is the giant rock just off the shore. Like Jurassic Park size rock. It's really prehistoric and cool. And then just next to it is an old nuclear plant with three tall smokestacks pointing into the sky.
Uniquely named Morro Rock, I'm told.
I loaded my stuff and took a walk down to the water and got a closer look at the rock. Took some IG videos and then headed back to the Siren, where we were playing. When we left last week for the tour, I brought Peter's American Fender Jazz bass as a backup to my bass. I've sort of regretted bringing it as it's one more piece of gear we need to move around. I decided to play it last night to sort of justify its existence.
Simon getting dialed in.
The J has a TSA rated hard case and the case itself is really nice, crushed electric blue interior. The bass itself is quite nice, with gold hardware, a light rosewood neck and nice rounded frets. Shaun had played it at the Belltown Yacht Club a few weeks ago and it was a little grimy, so I got some cleaner and wiped it off and played it at sound check. I busted out the pedal as well for tuning/muting capabilities, so we were all good there.
The J.
At soundcheck, Kip was our sound guy. He was the best sound person I've ever worked with in nearly 30 years of playing out. He had all our names typed into his iPad mixing software, which was cool. He was mentoring a dude named Ryan and the patience and guidance he gave him was really nice to see. Kip directed us individually, and then we checked as a group, he asked us again about our needs and then we let the next band play. Just a pro, this guy.
During the Bogeys sound check, we got drink AND food tickets, which was a delight. Though I'm being paid, I'm also using it to supplement some of the stuff at home. I had to pay Haley's first and last month's rent for her place, so things are getting a little tight. My unemployment is late going in this week, so despite having enough to cover things, I'm not used to having our funds drop below a certain number. I wasn't looking forward to buying dinner, but the Siren provided, so that was excellent. Pork belly tacos for me, and they were quite tasty.
The Bogeys from outside; I was on the phone with Haley.
Pork belly tacos, so goooood.
The Bogeys got up there, and they may have been the friendliest band I've met in a long time. They all got up and introduced themselves to us. Daniel on drums, Scott on guitar, AJ on vocals and guitar, and Nathan from yesterday, on bass. They did a surf/jam/rock thing and it was pretty cool. AJ was a young skinny kid that wore a toque the whole time; don't know how he could do it, but he did, despite the hot lights on stage.
Scott, Daniel, AJ (in white), Nathan (L-R).
After they finished, we jumped on and did the same set as we did in Oakland. I played pretty well, but not as well as Oakland. Sound on stage sounded great, and though I'd rather play THE HOG, the Jazz performed admirably. When I'd play on the bridge pickup, guess what? It sounded like a Jazz. I think it could use some setup; the sustain was a little lacking, but overall, it felt good, and the nice thin Jazz neck was a delight to wrap my hand around.
We ended our set and finished tearing down. Simon and I sat off the stage and AJ approached and said he had a place for us to stay! He was staying at a friend's house and was willing to put us up there, where he had 3 bedrooms and a couch. Incredible! We jumped in the van and followed AJ to his place up in the hills in Arroyo Grande.
I was excited to sleep in a quiet room, but ended up on the couch in the living room. But before that, I hung out with the crew for a bit, had my first (and only) alcoholic beverage on the trip so far, prepared thoughtfully by AJ (only featuring 3/4 shot of vodka). It was tasty enough and no side effects. We all engaged in some conversation, and then it was time for bed for me (around 2am). In went the earplugs, the eye mask (in this case, a bandana I brought along), and that was that.
Quick notes:
Up next, something called Non Plus Ultra, at a secret location in Los Angeles. Apparently we are staying in a couple of Airstream trailers owned by the niece of a member of Soundgarden. Hope that works for us!!
- Even though I totally overpacked, I sort of wish I brought a light jacket. All these coastal towns are chilly and breezy and though I have a hoodie, I'm thinking of having Alison bring me a light jacket of Todd's when she comes to LA tonight.
- Kip really was good. Super nice too. He's touring with a group in August called "Prog-ject" which is a bunch of prog dudes traveling the country for 3 months. He'll be at the Triple Door then, but I doubt I'll go. That said, he really went out of his way to make us sound good.
Kip and me.
- Every time I come to California, I ask myself, "could I/we live here?" I like it enough, and there are beautiful parts that would be cool to be a part of. Just being able to walk from Ryan's apartment in Benicia to a coffee shop within 5 minutes was really neat. I've only ever lived in two places, and neither place allowed any sort of walkability to anything.
- Hoping Peter pays me today. He's been paying every other day, every two shows, but after Oakland and Morro Bay, no payment yet. I'm guessing he'll Venmo after tonight's show, which we think will be decently attended.
- Still having fun, but definitely missing the routine of home. Can't wait to get back next week!
- Robb texted me the other day. There's a big show happening on Saturday, 7/8, where Cass will be playing with Love Battery. Stag, the headliner, has to back out for medical reasons and they asked PITO to play. Unfortunately, I can't do it so we're not doing it.
Hey man, enjoying your posts. You're a good writer, very interesting. Hope you're having fun!!
Appreciate that! Thanks for reading. Having fun for sure, learning a lot but ready to get home and get on with regular life!Hey man, enjoying your posts. You're a good writer, very interesting. Hope you're having fun!!
I just found this thread and spent the last hour + reading it straight through. Very cool of you to journal all this and post it for all to enjoy. Have a great rest of your tour.
Day 10 recap:
Got a decent night's sleep on the couch and jumped in shower. Pleased to note that on this 10 day trip, I only missed one shower because I didn't "think" I needed one. I didn't want to assume we all got showers. What I've learned now is "forget that." If there's a shower, I'm taking one. I'm too greasy not to.
We packed up and drove into Arroyo Grande, another small town, like Morro Bay and Cayucos before it. Grabbed a coffee and a cinnamon roll... only to find that we were gonna stop for lunch about 30 minutes later at In-N-Out. :/
Terrible picture of Andreini Coffee.
After the burger (animal style) and fries (too cakey for me), back on the road. Do I enjoy the In-N-Out burger? Yes. But I do think they are way overrated (repeated for emphasis). They're OK.
Heading further south for the City of Angels, specifically the Boyle Heights neighborhood, I guess. We drove down through Santa Barbara, where Marci went to college. I can't remember if I'd ever driven through it, but I always thought SB would be glitzier and nicer. Granted, I was in a van on the freeway and didn't stop, but from that vantage point, it was a little grungy.
Santa Barbara? Not as grungy from here.
Anyway, before getting to the venue, we stopped at Miles' childhood friend's partner's studio, Lolipop Records. They have a secured repurposed industrial building of some sort, that they've turned into a multi-use space, with recording studios, rehearsal/performance room, video shoot area, and living spaces above. Additionally, there were two small Airstream trailers in the parking lot that we were allowed to stay in. One was newer than the other, but both totally clutch and appreciated. We loaded some stuff out of the van into one of the studios and then headed to the venue.
Peter and Miles on the left, me and Simon on the right.
Iggy's great VW bus.
Studio equipment.
Would love to plug that in and hear how it sounded.
When I was told about this gig, there actually wasn't a venue listed. Instead, it's put on by a group called Non Plus Ultra, who do these "by invite only" shows around town. You buy a ticket and they tell you where it is. Apparently it's a way to keep these non-permitted (how? why? I don't know) shows from being shut down by The Man. So it was a little weird, but the show must go on, right?
We pulled the van into a grungy part of town, where, off the beaten path, was a small door with a handwritten sign above it indicating Mutant Records. Inside the door was a small retail area, with records, a Nintendo GameCube, some books and stickers. A cat also lounged on a stereo. However, in the back corner was a sliding door that led into a large covered area, converted into a performance space. There were also art installations and the like. I walked through that area and out the backside, where there was an enclosed lot with a storage container converted to a small bar/service area.
Stereo cat.
Walking into the space.
Looking in from the other side.
Simon in golden light.
There were two other bands playing with us, Cadet A and Teal Pop. The latter featured a dude named Lionel Williams who fronts a group called Vinyl Williams and evidently he is also the grandson of legendary composer John Williams. None of that mattered, other than to show that talent must run in the family because Lionel was an incredible musician (bass and guitar) and singer.
Cadet A soundcheck.
Forest Ray soundcheck.
Stage before we got started.
Anyway, all three bands got sound checks and then we got to wait. But, more importantly, this was one show I was able to have some family come to. Alison and Chandler came up from San Clemente, about 90 minutes away, to see me, and I was so happy to see them.
The last I saw Alison was last year, when we celebrated Ted's life at his memorial in late May. I don't remember if Chandler was there or not. She may have been working or at school in UNC at the time. They came in the venue and I got some hugs and we got to chat. Chandler's now graduated from school and had just completed a cross country bicycle ride from UNC to CA, or something crazy like that. It was great to see her as a young adult and not as a child any more. Really proud of her, she's a great kid.
And I am always thrilled to seen Alison. She has a really great sense of humor and an innocence about her that I simply love. Her and Marci are great sisters and I wish we all lived closer to each other so we could see them more than once every few years. Hope we all get to see each other soon.
Saying goodbye after the show.
We took the stage in a bit and we actually had some people in attendance. Miles' friend, Aubrey (from the studio) and her her partner, Iggy, were there. He had some other friends as well. And there were a bunch of people there just to be part of the event, in addition to my family.
I went back to the L1K last night and it felt great. We played pretty well and I'm trying to get Peter to show some of his personality when he's on stage. There are too many dead spots and I think for as funny and charismatic as he is, he needs to show that a little to get the audience engaged. As always, it feels like it's over before it begins, so I got off the stage and hung out with the girls some more and watched Cadet A.
They had an Asian woman playing bass, a T-bird, no less. I mentioned to her before the gig that I had a T-bird that I sold because I thought it was too big. Then she was getting up there with the same bass and was smaller than I was. And it still looked great. Sounded great too, she played the bass through one of those Ampeg mini-SVTs.
Asian bass player teammate.
After a bit, Ali and Chan had to go so I walked them out and we chatted outside her car for a bit before saying goodbye with hugs and pictures. I went back in to catch Teal Pop already playing, and heard Lionel on bass a little. What I heard was short, but great. Simon told me that of all the bassists he's heard, Lionel was the best he'd ever heard. I wish I had heard more, as Lionel switched to guitar after that.
The rest of the set was decent, a little dreamy and moody, and then I just hung out in the outdoor area while the band chatted with their homies. I was ready to pack it in, but the dudes were ready to hang. After packing out, we were invited to Iggy and Aubrey's house, so we headed there. Once there, it was more chat time. Iggy was super gracious, having toured before and understanding the struggles. He ordered 3 pizzas at 1:30am and had them delivered. Miles and Aubrey (friends since they were babies) chatted outside while the rest of us talked inside. They also had a giant tabby named Hank that was so friendly and fat, I could barely keep my hands off him.
Hank (the Tank) the Cat.
Finally, around 3am, me and Simon had had enough, so we jumped in the van and I drove back to the studio. Brushed my teeth, washed my face and by 3:30, I was tucked in the Airstream and headed to sleep. Whew.
Quick notes:
Got a decent night's sleep on the couch and jumped in shower. Pleased to note that on this 10 day trip, I only missed one shower because I didn't "think" I needed one. I didn't want to assume we all got showers. What I've learned now is "forget that." If there's a shower, I'm taking one. I'm too greasy not to.
We packed up and drove into Arroyo Grande, another small town, like Morro Bay and Cayucos before it. Grabbed a coffee and a cinnamon roll... only to find that we were gonna stop for lunch about 30 minutes later at In-N-Out. :/
Terrible picture of Andreini Coffee.
After the burger (animal style) and fries (too cakey for me), back on the road. Do I enjoy the In-N-Out burger? Yes. But I do think they are way overrated (repeated for emphasis). They're OK.
Heading further south for the City of Angels, specifically the Boyle Heights neighborhood, I guess. We drove down through Santa Barbara, where Marci went to college. I can't remember if I'd ever driven through it, but I always thought SB would be glitzier and nicer. Granted, I was in a van on the freeway and didn't stop, but from that vantage point, it was a little grungy.
Santa Barbara? Not as grungy from here.
Anyway, before getting to the venue, we stopped at Miles' childhood friend's partner's studio, Lolipop Records. They have a secured repurposed industrial building of some sort, that they've turned into a multi-use space, with recording studios, rehearsal/performance room, video shoot area, and living spaces above. Additionally, there were two small Airstream trailers in the parking lot that we were allowed to stay in. One was newer than the other, but both totally clutch and appreciated. We loaded some stuff out of the van into one of the studios and then headed to the venue.
Peter and Miles on the left, me and Simon on the right.
Iggy's great VW bus.
Studio equipment.
Would love to plug that in and hear how it sounded.
When I was told about this gig, there actually wasn't a venue listed. Instead, it's put on by a group called Non Plus Ultra, who do these "by invite only" shows around town. You buy a ticket and they tell you where it is. Apparently it's a way to keep these non-permitted (how? why? I don't know) shows from being shut down by The Man. So it was a little weird, but the show must go on, right?
We pulled the van into a grungy part of town, where, off the beaten path, was a small door with a handwritten sign above it indicating Mutant Records. Inside the door was a small retail area, with records, a Nintendo GameCube, some books and stickers. A cat also lounged on a stereo. However, in the back corner was a sliding door that led into a large covered area, converted into a performance space. There were also art installations and the like. I walked through that area and out the backside, where there was an enclosed lot with a storage container converted to a small bar/service area.
Stereo cat.
Walking into the space.
Looking in from the other side.
Simon in golden light.
There were two other bands playing with us, Cadet A and Teal Pop. The latter featured a dude named Lionel Williams who fronts a group called Vinyl Williams and evidently he is also the grandson of legendary composer John Williams. None of that mattered, other than to show that talent must run in the family because Lionel was an incredible musician (bass and guitar) and singer.
Cadet A soundcheck.
Forest Ray soundcheck.
Stage before we got started.
Anyway, all three bands got sound checks and then we got to wait. But, more importantly, this was one show I was able to have some family come to. Alison and Chandler came up from San Clemente, about 90 minutes away, to see me, and I was so happy to see them.
The last I saw Alison was last year, when we celebrated Ted's life at his memorial in late May. I don't remember if Chandler was there or not. She may have been working or at school in UNC at the time. They came in the venue and I got some hugs and we got to chat. Chandler's now graduated from school and had just completed a cross country bicycle ride from UNC to CA, or something crazy like that. It was great to see her as a young adult and not as a child any more. Really proud of her, she's a great kid.
And I am always thrilled to seen Alison. She has a really great sense of humor and an innocence about her that I simply love. Her and Marci are great sisters and I wish we all lived closer to each other so we could see them more than once every few years. Hope we all get to see each other soon.
Saying goodbye after the show.
We took the stage in a bit and we actually had some people in attendance. Miles' friend, Aubrey (from the studio) and her her partner, Iggy, were there. He had some other friends as well. And there were a bunch of people there just to be part of the event, in addition to my family.
I went back to the L1K last night and it felt great. We played pretty well and I'm trying to get Peter to show some of his personality when he's on stage. There are too many dead spots and I think for as funny and charismatic as he is, he needs to show that a little to get the audience engaged. As always, it feels like it's over before it begins, so I got off the stage and hung out with the girls some more and watched Cadet A.
They had an Asian woman playing bass, a T-bird, no less. I mentioned to her before the gig that I had a T-bird that I sold because I thought it was too big. Then she was getting up there with the same bass and was smaller than I was. And it still looked great. Sounded great too, she played the bass through one of those Ampeg mini-SVTs.
Asian bass player teammate.
After a bit, Ali and Chan had to go so I walked them out and we chatted outside her car for a bit before saying goodbye with hugs and pictures. I went back in to catch Teal Pop already playing, and heard Lionel on bass a little. What I heard was short, but great. Simon told me that of all the bassists he's heard, Lionel was the best he'd ever heard. I wish I had heard more, as Lionel switched to guitar after that.
The rest of the set was decent, a little dreamy and moody, and then I just hung out in the outdoor area while the band chatted with their homies. I was ready to pack it in, but the dudes were ready to hang. After packing out, we were invited to Iggy and Aubrey's house, so we headed there. Once there, it was more chat time. Iggy was super gracious, having toured before and understanding the struggles. He ordered 3 pizzas at 1:30am and had them delivered. Miles and Aubrey (friends since they were babies) chatted outside while the rest of us talked inside. They also had a giant tabby named Hank that was so friendly and fat, I could barely keep my hands off him.
Hank (the Tank) the Cat.
Finally, around 3am, me and Simon had had enough, so we jumped in the van and I drove back to the studio. Brushed my teeth, washed my face and by 3:30, I was tucked in the Airstream and headed to sleep. Whew.
Quick notes:
- I've been asking a lot of questions on tour, just because I love to know the why. One thing I asked last night is about these 30-year-olds I've been with. In my bands, we're all around 50 years old. We finish a show, we go home, we go to sleep. As much as I'd love to hang, we are just done. These kids? When the show's over, the night is just getting started, as described earlier with going to Aubrey's and Iggy's.
Iggy was really thoughtful in his response, indicating that the post-show hangs for touring bands are always good for networking, tips, finding places to stay, food, etc. He's done tours and has made some wonderful connections as a result, specifically in the downtime after a show.
The past two nights, I've tried being a little more social, hanging for a bit, contributing to conversations, etc. Don't know if I can do it all the time, but it's not gonna hurt if I do. - Smog was wicked in LA, looking almost like the marine layer, but definitely not. Pretty gross.
- Traffic, of course, is a part of life here. Heck, it's a part of life in Seattle, but it's a different animal here.
- Being somewhat of a gamer, having played GTAV and traveled throughout Los Santos (their homage to Los Angeles), it's uncanny how well they captured the vibe. I may have to dust off the Xbox again to run through that, or get it on PC. But need to finish RDR2 first.
- Having a ton of fun on this tour, but man, I am ready to go home. I know Marci and the kids have it on lockdown at home, but I can't help but feel like I'm missed.
- I guess my new employer shipped me a PC and a monitor, so these are waiting for me at home. Job starts 7/17, let's go!!
Day 11, here we go:
I woke up on Day 11 in the Airstream and it was good. Comfy. I bounced out and went to the studio to use the shower and facilities, which, and I cannot overstate this, was so convenient and appreciated. After getting cleaned up, I waited for the boys to wake up and get ready.
Waiting for the fellas to get up.
Cool little Musicmaster bass on a cool chair.
The hard part about getting in so late is that we get late starts. The good part about that, I suppose, is that we save some $ on breakfasts, but we still all go get coffee, so maybe it's not that great a savings after all. We hit the road after 11 or so (I can't remember) and headed north for Lompoc.
Of course, we stopped for coffee at a Starbucks attached to a gas station on a busy intersection. Saw some road rage where a guy actually stopped after the intersection to yell at the person that cut him off and had the audacity to honk. It didn't evolve beyond that but, what a day to be alive!
Back on the road, we drove a bit and I saw Peter's favorite place, Sprouts, and happened to mention seeing it. He pretty much cut off a few lanes of traffic to take the next exit, and then we made our way over. He and Miles picked up sandwiches, Simon got a copy of The Silmarillion (he finished the Lord of the Rings trilogy on this trip) from Barnes and Noble, and I grabbed a box of protein bars for breakfasts (no need for lunch, had a Starbucks sandwich earlier).
Aside from that, the trip to Lompoc was pretty uneventful. I did look on Wikipedia to see what Lompoc had to offer. The word "Lompoc" means "stagnant water" in the Native American language of Purisimeño. Not sure why they called it that, I didn't go that deep in that subject. What I did find interesting, though, was that in the 80's, Lompoc was designated as a future site for space shuttle launches. Economy grew there as hotels and businesses were built in anticipation. However, after the Challenger exploded in 1986 (fun fact: I was in the orthodontist's chair getting braces put on when it happened), plans changed and Lompoc never became that launch site, at which point, the city went into a recession. Bummer.
We arrived in Lompoc around 4:30, but we weren't scheduled to play until 9. So once again, we had time to kill. Unfortunately, where the Wicked Shamrock was, there wasn't much to see or do. We parked right out front, right next to the "smoking section," which was basically right out the front door. The bar itself was at the corner of a L-shaped strip mall, which contained a vape shop, a tax/document center, a fashion/hair salon, and a t-shirt printing shop. It was pretty old and grungy, but that's what we booked, and that's where we were.
Entrance to the Wild Shamrock.
After loading in, we all took turns hanging out in the van because we could at least be by ourselves and not stuck in the bar. Eventually, Simon went to grab a bite, as did I. Through the generosity of my pals at TalkBass, I received the generosity of another reader and was able to get dinner, as I hadn't been paid for the past few shows yet. I walked over to a local brewery and had a tasty tri-tip French dip sandwich. I opted for the side salad as well since I haven't been eating the best on this trip (but feeling pretty good despite that).
I love a good French dip. That was a good French dip.
I also haven't been able to exercise at all on the trip. No running. An OK amount of walking every few days, but I am missing putting on the HOKAs and getting few miles in. Just not feasible, even with the downtime during the day. I'll start it up when I get home this week.
This Wicked Shamrock was the prototypical neighborhood dive bar. A couple pool tables, a pony wall, a stage and dance floor on the other side of the wall. When we got there, there were about 10 people inside, drinking, talking, playing pool. About the only redeeming quality of the bar was a small bookshelf (take a book/leave a book).
When the time came to play, there was a nice little crowd. They were pretty appreciative and danced at times. We were scheduled from 9-1, with a few breaks sprinkled in. For our first break, we announced a 5 minute break, which was more like 10-15. After our second set, we did the same, and then the manager asked us to no longer take breaks and just play through.
Always waiting.
Put the bassist in the corner.
My view from the stage.
The tools for every show but one, so far.
Maybe the late nights are catching up, or it was a weird vibe to the club, but I wasn't feeling it, and Miles thought the rest of us weren't as well. I felt like I was just going through the motions. Because it was the long set, we had to play some of the covers and tunes we haven't done as much. There were a couple mistakes here and there, but overall, it is what it is.
We had planned on heading to Cayucos to stay with a friend of the band's, but that town was 61 miles away, about 1:20, and we didn't want to do that after 1am. We got offered to stay at a place in town by a few guys that were at the club, but we decided that heading to Cayucos would be OK as we had to go north on Sunday anyway.
We took a quick detour with a local named Jack, who is in Lompoc trying to revitalize the local theater. We walked over and took some pictures and chatted for a few, before piling in the van, dropping Jack off (no pun intended), and heading to Cayucos, with me at the wheel.
An uneventful 1:20 later, and we were at our friend Darren's house in Cayucos for the night. Surprisingly neat and tidy for the bachelor pad. Happy to have a clean and spacious living room to crash in for the night.
Quick notes:
I woke up on Day 11 in the Airstream and it was good. Comfy. I bounced out and went to the studio to use the shower and facilities, which, and I cannot overstate this, was so convenient and appreciated. After getting cleaned up, I waited for the boys to wake up and get ready.
Waiting for the fellas to get up.
Cool little Musicmaster bass on a cool chair.
The hard part about getting in so late is that we get late starts. The good part about that, I suppose, is that we save some $ on breakfasts, but we still all go get coffee, so maybe it's not that great a savings after all. We hit the road after 11 or so (I can't remember) and headed north for Lompoc.
Of course, we stopped for coffee at a Starbucks attached to a gas station on a busy intersection. Saw some road rage where a guy actually stopped after the intersection to yell at the person that cut him off and had the audacity to honk. It didn't evolve beyond that but, what a day to be alive!
Back on the road, we drove a bit and I saw Peter's favorite place, Sprouts, and happened to mention seeing it. He pretty much cut off a few lanes of traffic to take the next exit, and then we made our way over. He and Miles picked up sandwiches, Simon got a copy of The Silmarillion (he finished the Lord of the Rings trilogy on this trip) from Barnes and Noble, and I grabbed a box of protein bars for breakfasts (no need for lunch, had a Starbucks sandwich earlier).
Aside from that, the trip to Lompoc was pretty uneventful. I did look on Wikipedia to see what Lompoc had to offer. The word "Lompoc" means "stagnant water" in the Native American language of Purisimeño. Not sure why they called it that, I didn't go that deep in that subject. What I did find interesting, though, was that in the 80's, Lompoc was designated as a future site for space shuttle launches. Economy grew there as hotels and businesses were built in anticipation. However, after the Challenger exploded in 1986 (fun fact: I was in the orthodontist's chair getting braces put on when it happened), plans changed and Lompoc never became that launch site, at which point, the city went into a recession. Bummer.
We arrived in Lompoc around 4:30, but we weren't scheduled to play until 9. So once again, we had time to kill. Unfortunately, where the Wicked Shamrock was, there wasn't much to see or do. We parked right out front, right next to the "smoking section," which was basically right out the front door. The bar itself was at the corner of a L-shaped strip mall, which contained a vape shop, a tax/document center, a fashion/hair salon, and a t-shirt printing shop. It was pretty old and grungy, but that's what we booked, and that's where we were.
Entrance to the Wild Shamrock.
After loading in, we all took turns hanging out in the van because we could at least be by ourselves and not stuck in the bar. Eventually, Simon went to grab a bite, as did I. Through the generosity of my pals at TalkBass, I received the generosity of another reader and was able to get dinner, as I hadn't been paid for the past few shows yet. I walked over to a local brewery and had a tasty tri-tip French dip sandwich. I opted for the side salad as well since I haven't been eating the best on this trip (but feeling pretty good despite that).
I love a good French dip. That was a good French dip.
I also haven't been able to exercise at all on the trip. No running. An OK amount of walking every few days, but I am missing putting on the HOKAs and getting few miles in. Just not feasible, even with the downtime during the day. I'll start it up when I get home this week.
This Wicked Shamrock was the prototypical neighborhood dive bar. A couple pool tables, a pony wall, a stage and dance floor on the other side of the wall. When we got there, there were about 10 people inside, drinking, talking, playing pool. About the only redeeming quality of the bar was a small bookshelf (take a book/leave a book).
When the time came to play, there was a nice little crowd. They were pretty appreciative and danced at times. We were scheduled from 9-1, with a few breaks sprinkled in. For our first break, we announced a 5 minute break, which was more like 10-15. After our second set, we did the same, and then the manager asked us to no longer take breaks and just play through.
Always waiting.
Put the bassist in the corner.
My view from the stage.
The tools for every show but one, so far.
Maybe the late nights are catching up, or it was a weird vibe to the club, but I wasn't feeling it, and Miles thought the rest of us weren't as well. I felt like I was just going through the motions. Because it was the long set, we had to play some of the covers and tunes we haven't done as much. There were a couple mistakes here and there, but overall, it is what it is.
We had planned on heading to Cayucos to stay with a friend of the band's, but that town was 61 miles away, about 1:20, and we didn't want to do that after 1am. We got offered to stay at a place in town by a few guys that were at the club, but we decided that heading to Cayucos would be OK as we had to go north on Sunday anyway.
We took a quick detour with a local named Jack, who is in Lompoc trying to revitalize the local theater. We walked over and took some pictures and chatted for a few, before piling in the van, dropping Jack off (no pun intended), and heading to Cayucos, with me at the wheel.
An uneventful 1:20 later, and we were at our friend Darren's house in Cayucos for the night. Surprisingly neat and tidy for the bachelor pad. Happy to have a clean and spacious living room to crash in for the night.
Quick notes:
- Upon arriving at the Wicked Shamrock, this happened while I was having a seat in the bathroom:
Me: scrolling on phone
Him: (under breath) f*ck…
Me: …
Him: how's your s*it treating you?
Me: feelin' better already.
Him: where you comin' up or down from?
Me: Los Angeles area.
Him: well, welcome to Lompoc. You know we have a federal penitentiary here?
Me: I've heard that.
Him: we've got the highest number of meth users in the state of California too, woo hoo!
Me: …
Him: Most people just drive through Lompoc on their way somewhere else.
Me: …
Him: loud belch
Him: (under breath) f*ck…
Me: …
Him: how's your s*it treating you?
Me: feelin' better already.
Him: where you comin' up or down from?
Me: Los Angeles area.
Him: well, welcome to Lompoc. You know we have a federal penitentiary here?
Me: I've heard that.
Him: we've got the highest number of meth users in the state of California too, woo hoo!
Me: …
Him: Most people just drive through Lompoc on their way somewhere else.
Me: …
Him: loud belch
- Finally got paid for 3 gigs, so that's good. I'm still owed another one, but it'll happen when it does. We apparently got a guarantee for last night, which helped. Evidently the LA gig only paid $74. And there were a lot of people there. Sort of a bummer.
- Speaking of payment, the place we played last week in SF, the Milk Bar, said they'd pay after July 4th and they still haven't. Peter has called, texted and emailed with no response. He's understandably frustrated about that, so we're going to try to stop by today.
- When I drove to Cayucos, it was dark but I could see fine. I stayed in the lane and got us there safely and comfortably. Miles and Peter have done most of the driving, and yes, they've gotten us there safely, but comfortably? I suppose it depends on who you ask, but there have been some less comfortable moments, that for sure.
- Peter did try opening up a little more before some songs and I think he can do it, but last night's crowd wasn't the greatest, so let's see how it goes tomorrow.
- Jack from Lompoc says Lompoc stands for Lots Of Mean People On Crank. Funny, but sad.
TB, asking for a super last minute assist. We are without lodging tonight and are in the San Francisco area. Anyone out there willing to put us up or know anyone that might be willing to put us up?
We are leaving for Eureka in the morning so would be out of your hair fairly quickly.
Thanks!
We are leaving for Eureka in the morning so would be out of your hair fairly quickly.
Thanks!
@lildrgn - can't help you with SF accommodations sorry, but just wanted to say how much I'm enjoying this trip with you - vicariously living the dream of touring the west coast of your world - thanks man and good luck for the rest of the trip!
Morning update, we struck out on all sorts of accommodations, so we decided to make our way up to a Motel 6 in Rohnert Park. Accommodations were adequate, and it was the best sleep I've had in a couple nights, surprisingly enough. Appreciate the community as always and will have a full update once we get back on the road.
Ha, was gonna do the BBD, but those calorie listings scared me away since we're doing a 4-5 hr drive to Eureka today. Plus, getting in at 11:30pm last night and eating a Whopper may not have been the best idea. Chase that with 1500 calories of pancakes/french toast? As much as I would like to, had to abstain.
Small world, though!
