Maybe a few months ago, Tim reached out and asked if Embers wanted to get back together for a late summer gig. We got together in May to dust off some songs for our release party in June, and then was all done until earlier this month. We started getting together to rehearse for our reunion show, taking place last night.
Earlier this week, they said tickets were low and within the last day or so, the club was sold out! Two sell outs this year for me, that must be a first.
New dragon strap for the new bass
Saturday was spent playing with the new bass, testing out my new bass with my bass amps, heading to Guitar Center to buy a new strap for the bass, then waiting until it was time to head to Ballard for soundcheck as I was backlining my rig. So that meant leaving the house around 4:45 for a 5:30 arrival time.
Marci was coming, and I got her a guest spot, which was great as all sorts of people were hitting folks up for tickets. I had committed to getting Mike and Amy a couple passes because we love them and other issues, so my people were good. Had to do some gymnastics to get Ian in the room for photos as Will forgot to get him one. Luckily my new buds in Seola Station (Ruth) was able to make some magic happen as she purchased extras just in case she had people that wanted to go. Pro move!
Marci and I pulled up to the Sunset right behind Tim and Kay. I gave him a hug and quickly gave him an old Matchbox VW GTI I had. Since I no longer have a GTI, I figured he should have it as he bought one last year when he came into some $$. He and I both loaded in and then reparked our cars and we were good to go.
Imagine my surprise when I got there and Robb's little buddy, Chris, was there (sarcasm). I don't remember him in the previous Embers days, so this may have been his first show. He's just so squirmy, I don't. I am not trying to be mean; I just have no patience for him. As I was trying to get my amp on stage, he was just oddly in the way. Ugh.
Anyway, we set up for soundcheck. I brought my Avatar 212 and Orange Terror Bass. I was supplying bass backline stage right, by the bar and backstage entrance. I strapped up the new P bass and tried it out and immediately, low signal. It may have been the same input jack thing I had happen the other day. After jiggling it around, no change, so I busted out old Goldie and we got to work.
Soundcheck pic featuring the Professor
After soundcheck, Marci grabbed me to go to KAVU down the street, she wanted an opinion on a backpack she liked. She got it and then we went to dinner next door. Ran into Ben London there with his wife and son. He wasn't coming to the show as his son was leaving town the next day so we just said hi. After dinner, we grabbed a molten chocolate cake down the block and snapped a pic.
I was a bit antsy to get back to the club so I left Marci there to finish her treat and ran into Patrick, Kathy and Reb from Golden West. Having played with Kathy and Patrick before, it was nice to be on the same bill with them and their band. I had met Reb a few months ago at the Conor Byrne show and really liked her vibe and energy. Kathy snapped a pic!
After so many years of playing out, I'm finally feeling like I'm part of the scene. I know people, they know me and generally speaking, we like each other. It's really cool!
Finally I made it inside and got to catch a few songs by Seola Station. At soundcheck, when I thought I'd be offering my rig, I spoke with their bassist, Brian, who said he was gonna use his own rig as he likes being stage left and didn't want to move my stuff. Then he busts out the killer Mesa 12/15 mini stack and I figure that I'd want to use that if I had it too.
Epic rig!
Seola Station was cool. There's a description of their music as smoky and sultry, and that's pretty accurate. Ruth, the singer, was a knockout in heels, a slinky dress and really unique vocals. Low register, singing but almost spoken, very neat. Her band was tight and energetic as well. Really enjoyed what I saw and heard.
Seola Station
Marci and I did head backstage and chill for a bit, trying to get people to enjoy some cupcakes for Cass and Tim's birthdays. Her and I chopped it up with Patrick a bit, talking about backyard wildlife, of all things. I shared my Dodo the cat trauma from earlier this summer. It was just nice to chat and hang out and see our friends.
Hooray for cupcakes!
Hooray for Marci and I!
Pro stage plot diagram for Seola Station!
Golden West took the stage next, with Kim V on lead vocals, Patrick on slide, Kathy on lead guitar, Emily on rhythm guitar, Reb on bass and the great Aimee Zoe on drums. Watching her play was a joy, reminded me of my obsession with Anika Nilles. Same joy on her face as Anika's. Really cool! Reb played some great lines and the band was just fantastic. Marci and Emily talked for a bit before their set as she's from Cincinnati, so they talked about Riley's adventures out there, it was pretty funny.
Golden West!
During their set, I got to see a bunch of folks: Steve and Salena, Andi, Howie, Scott Woods, Pete Nordstrom, Dave Place, Lisa Gordon, Will Wiles, Dan Lancaster, Rob Dent, Ben Heege, Charles and Cindy, both Robb's sisters, Renee and Ruthie, Steve Schneider and Michelle from way back, maybe some others I'm forgetting. Just a love in, it was great!
Once GW got off the stage, we got setup and then had a band meeting like Tim likes to do. He gives a quick pep talk and then we jump back onstage and do our thing. All my stuff was working, from IEMs to wireless guitar and it was time to go. Hit the stage running with Game Changer, into Tomorrow, which we never played back in the day.
From Teddy Laabs
Both songs went pretty well. I could hear myself fine, it was the playing that was tough at first. I didn't really warm up and as soon as we started playing, I was just pumped. All the moving around makes it hard to pick accurately, but I think I was likely the only one that noticed. More missed notes than wrong notes, so that's good, I suppose.
For Cass' and Tim's birthdays, Robb and Darla bought some party favors and he passed them out to all the people, so after our 3rd song, Sideline, everyone sang them happy birthday and then blew the blowers. It was pretty sweet.
Happy Birthday to Cass & Tim!
Initially at practices, I was playing all the songs with pick, after never having done so in the past. It was fine, but on some of the slower songs, Break This Down, Pull, Road Song, I decided to go fingers. Same with Boom, though last night I switched to pick mid-song as it was just too fast and I couldn't keep up. I ended up doing Chimp with fingers as well, I think it just flows better.
Overall, pretty pleased with how we played. I think there were some clams here and there by all of us, but for our first show back, not too shabby. A bunch of great pix were taken, let's take a look. First up, Mike Mitchell's pix.
Next up, Howie Cohen's pix.
This might be my favorite picture of the night.
As of now, there are tons of pics of us but not a lot of videos. Funny thing, our friend Bob Mattson came out to shoot GoPro vids as he's done before. He got set up early and then went to dinner. Before long, Cass reached out to me to ask where Bob was. Apparently both SS and GW hired camera crews as well and they wanted the spots where Bob hid his cameras. He was kind enough to come back and accommodate them, but it was sort of a pain.
Speaking of videos, our pals Ted Laabs and Will Wiles posted vids. I'm expecting Bob's as well as Derrick's in the near future, as well as any more that may pop up.
As far as future SE shows go, nothing's in the books. We have talked about it and we feel good about more. As far as new music? Who knows? I know Tim has stuff he wants to bring in but we'll have to feel it out as a band and see how it is. I think we've all grown and if we can settle whatever happened in the past, there may be some hope. Especially if we can sell out shows on the regular? Maybe we play once or twice a year, make it a can't miss prop, vs a "we can catch them next month" type thing.
And now, that's a wrap on gigs. Nothing officially booked for me as of right now. Grooves may have something in a few weeks, more details on that soon, supposedly.
Another Thursday gig, another complaint about Seattle traffic. It took me 45 minutes to get home from work, a quick make of dinner, and then out the door to get to the Sunset by 6:30 or so. That ride took me another 45 minutes or so, but I found a decent parking spot, so I guess it paid off.
My old pal, Corey, from the Navins, plays in a couple bands and asked us to be a part of this bill. He's plays keys and guitar in Trances and it's always cool seeing him. I reached out a little too late to see if bands wanted to share gear, and by the time I heard back, no one replied, so I packed up the Orange Terror Bass, the Avatar 212 and Goldie the Bass just in case.
Showing up, the headliner, Sam Cobra, was soundchecking and after they were done, the nice, huge-handed bassist, Jensen, offered me the use of his Bergantino 212 and ThunderFunk amp. He played a Serek bass and after looking it up, it is a custom model and let's just say his gear is all boutique and very nice. I ended up using his amp after hearing how nice his bass sounded through it all. Here's how it looked after sound check with the G&L L-1000.
Sweet little setup!
Last show we played at the Central didn't go exactly like we wanted. There were errors and mistakes all over. The stage audio wasn't great and we were all annoyed with ourselves afterward. Last night, we played like we know how we can play. Maybe it's having good sound on stage, who knows? But it certainly doesn't hurt!
There were just a few people when we started at 8. Kim was there, Robb's friend Chris, and then, of all people Tim! Robb and Tim bumped into each other before the show (Tim was seeing Spinal Tap nearby) and he ended up coming in for the show. No one came for me, but it's Ballard and it's a Thursday, so I wasn't too worried about it.
It also helped that I ran through the songs the night before. I don't think Cass did; he was traveling since the week before, seeing Oasis in Pasadena over the weekend, then in Chicago since Monday for work. He flew in Thursday morning and was on fumes by the time we started. He was a trouper, though and played solid as always.
Robb really came through clutch. He didn't feel great about the Central show, but he showed out for the Sunset. Singing was on point, guitaring was definitely improved. I gave him a vocal suggestion to simplify a few lines on a few songs. He was really oversinging on a tune and throwing off the harmony part for me. He reigned it in and it made a difference.
I felt like I played pretty well. With the great bass tone and stage sound, it just felt comfortable. I'd like to feel that good at any gig. I think my backing vox were decent and for the most part, they worked. Maybe a touch more in the wedge for next time we're there.
After we finished, Jensen and his cousin, Carl, came up to say hi. Carl did most of the talking, a large, long-bearded dude. Nice guy, made interesting comments about the veins on my arms poppin' on stage. Tim also was very complimentary, saying Cass and I were locked in and that it was the best he'd ever seen me play. Really great to see him and chat, even if just for a moment.
Next up was Trances. When I played with Corey in the Navins, he played drums and sang backing vocals. In Trances, he was one of 4 dudes across the front of the stage. He had nice stage presence and was great on keys and guitar. I do wish his vocals and keys were mixed a little hotter, but it was a nice show. They were heavier than I expected; I thought they'd be more keys oriented, but it was definitely all guitars.
Trances
Last up was Sam Cobra. They were interesting at sound check. When I talked to Carl, he said Jensen picked up bass because of him. That implied he was a relatively new bassist? It seemed to be when I heard him play as there were parts he was missing, but then I learned he'd only been with Sam Cobra for two rehearsals or something like that.
He played uniquely as well; he was solid enough but his fretting hand was really energetic and all over the place. Maybe it was because of his huge hands; they looked like big white spiders on the bass.
Jensen with the big hands
Musically, SC was OK. The singer had a really pure and pretty voice, but it was just too much of a contrast with the guitars, bass and drums. Even though the music wasn't overly heavy, it was just loud enough that her voice couldn't really shine. They were also pretty bland on stage, not a lot of energy or presence, which didn't help.
Sam Cobra
Cass and I powered through the entire night, despite him stretching his day by 2 hours by heading home from Chicago. We loaded out and that was that. 6 hours later, it was back home and back at it another day.
Next up, Sunset Grooves on 9/27 for a private party. Stay tuned.
First show of the new year, with a nice line up and venue to kick things off... until one of the bands dropped out day of show.
even AI generated posters are weird
We had set up a show with Guest Directors (with Gary T on guitar from the Navins) and Patrons of Husbandry (with Rusty W on guitar/vox). Having the show at the Sunset was an added bonus. About the only thing we had issues with was the order, which had us headlining. Overall, not a big deal for me, but sort of a nitpicky thing for others in the band.
On the day of the show, I had the day off and soon heard that one of the members of Guest Directors was having a medical issue and as a result, they couldn't play. GD was offering up their bass rig and drums before dropping out, so some pivoting was needed. I ended up bringing the Orange and the Avatar 212.
We tried to get a last-minute replacement band and they were willing to play, but I was vetoed, which was sort of a bummer. We thought the other band might not bring people, but my thought was that's at least 4 more people and possibly more, but whatever, it was all good.
Come gig time, I drove out to Ballard and right in front of the Sunset, there was a spot! However, the car in front of me took it! But then the car right next to it backed out and your boy got the best parking spot he's ever gotten at the club. I loaded in and was gonna get ready for soundcheck...
Only to find out that the Patrons of Husbandry had already setup and bounced for dinner, meaning there was no way to get our stuff up there and we would get no soundcheck. No big deal, I suppose; PoH didn't get a soundcheck either.
Once PoH got started, there was a nice crowd. I had two people from work, who brought 4 additional people. Plus we had Mike and Amy (nice to see them twice this week!), Ted, Derrick and Monica, Nick, Jeff B, the Guest Directors (minus their bassist), Ben and Roger from Coool Babies, Jimmy C, Phil, and others. Those were just the regulars.
I've known Rusty from PoH for a long time, despite not knowing him hardly at all. Musician relationships are like that, unless you're in bands with them. You see them a few times a year at shows and the like, and that's about it. But it was really cool to reconnect with Rusty. He was in Seattle bands like Flop, Llama, the Fastbacks and I'm sure several others I'm forgetting. When I was in the Lund Bros in the 2000s, we played with Llama quite a few times and had all sorts of fun.
With PoH, they were a 4 piece, with both Rusty and Scott playing guitars and trading off on lead vocals. I met Ethan, their bassist, who had a killer P and Ampeg setup. He was solid and provided a great bottom end to the churning washy guitars that Rusty and Scott put out.
Patrons of Husbandry
Once PoH finished, we took the stage to a decent crowd, especially considering we had only two bands on the bill. My work friends, especially the young one (23 years old!), were quite appreciative. The young crew was energetic and noisy for both bands, and we enjoyed having them.
For this evening, I played the butter P and the aforementioned Orange and Avatar combo. Robb played his new Les Paul and had that amp cranked! He was stage left and wow, he was loud. I thought I was loud, but I had to be to hear it over that guitar.
We started off with a new set, one that Cass drafted, which was pretty cool. Nice to start off with different tunes, even though we have been playing the same 10-11 for the past few years. We could have done a few more tonight, but we haven't been practicing some of the original PITO songs from the COVID days.
Overall, the set had nice energy and the crowd seemed to like it a lot. I felt like I was pretty sloppy, missing notes here and there, forgetting that my long hair gets in my way and sometimes I simply can't see the frets and markers. On "Nomenclature," I took a huge dump at the end and missed out on about 2-4 bars where I just couldn't see what I was doing.
I set my phone off to the side and recorded our gig and it wasn't as bad as I thought it was. It also caught all the goofy banter between songs. Robb gave me a nice shout out about being a Rush fan and the people also seemed to like that.
Sound-wise, after having nice sounds in the studio, the Orange did fine work at the Sunset. After listening back, I probably could've dialed in some more bottom end (was heavy on the mids for some reason), but overall, it worked pretty well. I should be seeing some FOH videos soon, as my camera was on the floor next to my feet, so bass was pretty up-front.
Nice night all the way around, made about $175 for the band, which is going into the song mixing budget.
Yeah, I played a show last night but the best part was not the gig, but pre-show.
Me and Cookie
Cookie looking like Bella
After slogging through an hour's worth of traffic due to freeway improvements, I dropped my stuff off and headed to the bar at the front of the Sunset to say hi to some friends. There were two dogs next to me and one of them was basically Bella in disguise. Her name was Cookie and she was quite sweet.
This is Bella in 2020
I got my fill of visiting with Bella's ghost and jumped on stage for sound check. I didn't bring a rig, only a couple basses (The Gold and the butter bass) and my pedals. One of the other bands (turns out it was Tango Alpha Tango from PDX) was sharing their SVT and 410 cab, so that was cool.
Our stage setup
During sound check, everything sounded pretty good. A few months ago, I got some new earplugs for onstage, the horribly named Eargasm plugs. And though they work, I just haven't gelled with them. Even with the smaller size, they are a little weird fitting to my ears and they just don't seem right to me.
Despite that, the Ampeg sounded nice, the monitors for my BGVs were decent, but I asked for more. Trouble was, I got feedback, so I told Colin, our engineer, to leave the levels where they were at. And with that, we were off. Without a set list, of course. Luckily, we had an old one in my pedal case so we edited that and kicked it off.
Crowd was a little light, as it seems to be in Seattle when the show starts at 8:30, but lucky for us, they push fog in the club and it makes it hard to see anyone. We started with our song, Nomenclature, which is fast and kicks us off with some energy. It's a bit of a challenge to hit the ground running without warming up, but it went pretty well. At that point in the set, I could hear my vocals OK. As we continued, though, I had a harder time. Not sure why or what changed.
Anyway, on we went, it was pretty high energy and fun. I haven't been doing any big jumps lately as I always land off time and it throws me off. Plus there was a big support beam above my head and I didn't want to hit that. But, I did some medium jumps, only one or two, and it worked out ok.
No pictures yet, but there should be come coming soon and I'll put them up when they are posted.
Next up was Low Hums. I saw them last year before I went on the road with Forest Ray. I can't say I remembered much about them, but I thought there were more dudes. For this gig, it was a three-piece. Bassist played a P and what sounded like flats. He was super solid, not flashy, but definitely in the pocket and doing his thing. The guitarist had shades on (I just can't do it; hard enough to see without em in the dark) and was really cool with his effects and playing. And the drummer was on a righty kit playing lefty. He was also solid and loomed over his kit. They had some cool moments and I enjoyed the set.
Low Hums
Either the Low Hums played a short set or Tango Alpha Tango took a minute to get set up. Maybe both? Anyway, TAT took the stage as a quartet. When Stereo Embers played with them in 2018, they were a three piece. For this show, they had another guitarist/keyboardist with them, and he was great.
Overall, this band is a showcase for Nathan, the guitarist. He is a great singer, with cool stage presence, and is a shredder in the John Mayer sense of the word. Really good player and sort of knows it. His wife, Mirabai, on bass, was solid on her CS Jazz. I do wish she was up in the mix a bit as she was sort of drowned out by both guitars on either side of her. And the drummer was really epic. He was a joy to watch and really delivered a solid set.
Tango Alpha Tango
After our set, I used the restrooms (Sunset has the best bathrooms in the Seattle club scene) and came out to some ladies using the mirror and blocking the sink (shared sinks). They complimented the gig after realizing I was in the band. Unique and interesting to get a compliment in that situation.
And then someone else (full disclosure, drummer's wife, who tells it like it is) said after a hard week, seeing and hearing us was like church for her. She's seen a million club shows with Cass, but for whatever reason, this show really resonated with her, so that's cool.
All in all, a very enjoyable evening. I got to do what I love with people I love and get it back from the other bands. Can't wait to do it all again in November.
Note to self: if we play any weeknight gigs, either I switch shifts so I'm off earlier, or we don't go first.
I left work at 5pm and got home at 6. I changed and ate a quick dinner, was on the road to the Sunset by 6:30 or so. I offered my bass amp for backline and hoped to be there by 7. I got called about 6:45 because they wanted to soundcheck the other bands. I was stuck in more terrible traffic. I got to the Sunset around 7:15 and loaded in, only to be told they had a GK bass rig ready to go. :/
I found a parking spot pretty quickly and then set up to soundcheck. I brought my Terror Bass and Ashdown 115, planning to put it on a chair, which is what I did. Only the butter bass made the journey as I wanted to travel light. We did a quick check and then stood down for a little bit, waiting for our 8pm start time.
Crap picture of the Terror Bass and the Ashdown
Same pedals as always
Butter bass makes its PITO debut
Chatted with Darla and Darcy for a few minutes, and then it was time for us to take the stage. 8pm show, we started around 8:05 or so, with a 35-40 minute set time. There was a decent crowd when we started, with about 20-30 people in the room. I wasn't expecting anyone for me, so I was happy to see a couple friends walk in: Taylor, who I worked with many years ago, and Paul, who drums in the Pop Cycle. Jonathan P. walked in as well, though he likes all of us, not just me.
As we were trying to be time conscious, I tried to not talk on mic like I might usually. Robb did most of the chat, so it worked out. With 3 months since our last show and maybe 2-3 rehearsals in that time frame (blame COVID, trips, life events, etc), we did the best we could.
I felt a little sloppy. I couldn't decide if I wanted to hold my pick with the pointy side or rounded side down. While playing, I recently realized that if I rotate my pick 90° and play with the fat, rounded side, I can pick a bit quicker. The trade-off is sometimes I just miss the string due to the shorter angle of the point. Regardless, there were missed notes, there was one instance of a dropped pick as well. Vocals were OK, for the most part. Ron, the sound guy, had my vox dialed in hot up front, so it threw me a little. It's hard for me to remember that just because I hear it loud, most likely the FOH sound is fine. My hair kept blocking my view as well. I have to see the neck at times and on a dark stage with shoulder-length hair, it can be challenging.
During Panic Attack, I tried to take a couple pictures before the bass comes in.
My boy Cass
My man Robb
Ghost me and some people
Before long, it was over and I had great fun. I was moving fast to tear down and the next band's guitarist was already on stage putting his pedals down and getting set up. Even the sound guy indicated it was bad etiquette. I made a snooty comment about the guitarist keeping my water since it was already up there, but I don't think he heard me. Whatever. No need to make enemies.
Despite that, the next band was really good. They were mid-30s, polished, super tight and great singers with great harmonies. They brought a nice crowd and had a great set.
After them, Cass stepped out to the front bar for a drink and I joined him in line. The guy in front grabbed me and told me how melodic my playing was. He then realized that Cass was the drummer (Cass is always "complaining" that he never gets recognized) and proceeded to tell us both how much he, a sound engineer, loved our bass drum/bass lockdown status. It was really cool to get the compliments from him and his friend, so we chatted for a bit with them before heading back into the music area.
Cold Comfort
Rounding out the night was the Maya Experience, a little grunge trio. Maya was a powerhouse singer and her band was ok, but the songs were a little simplistic. It was interesting that for most of her songs (which were mainly of the 2-chord variety), the bassist was fine. He pretty much played root notes and stayed glued to one spot on the stage, practically with his back to the crowd. Then they got to their last two songs and his bass notes were just out. At first, since the entire song sounded weird, I thought it was dissonance by choice, like an artist's decision. Then the next song came up and he was definitely out a 1/2 step, at which time I realized he was either not knowing the song, not knowing how to look at the guitarist's neck, or not knowing how to adjust on the fly. Whatever. No one seemed to care, the kids seemed to like it enough.
The Maya Experience
All in all, despite the stupid traffic, we had a lot of fun. We are booking time with Jonathan to finish off three more songs. I got to play live with Planets, after not having done so for 3.5 months (!), and we actually made some $$ ($284, going right into the recording budget).
After not playing with PITO on stage for so long, I forgot how great it is to do so. Very satisfying and I can't wait to do it again. Sadly, we have nothing on the books until August, for a private party, but I'm trying to drum some shows up with other bands. Stay tuned.
Our first non-weekend show as PITO. We did do a Wednesday with Embers a few years ago at El Corazon. That was an interesting night.
Last night, it was us as the middle band between an artist called Tsubaki and then Knathan Ryan and his band. We had mixed feelings about playing on a Thursday, not necessarily because we think we're better than Thursdays, but more because we weren't sure if we'd have much of a draw on a weeknight.
When I got there after a 45-minute drive, I was surprised to see something like 5 guitar/bass amps on the small stage. I thought it was going to be a stripped down gig as Tsubaki, was simply playing her keyboard (albeit through a Fender Bandmaster amp). Turns out, Knathan's band had 3 guitarists and a bassist, plus Tsubaki on keys as well, so, well, there you go.
I wheeled my Avatar on stage and stuck it off to the side. No sound check for us, but would line check before playing.
Tsubaki, aka Akaiko (may have butchered that spelling), was a super talented singer/pianist. She was accompanied by a guy on trumpet, who also played acoustic and trumpet in Knathan's band. It was a quiet and cool set by her. Really excellent on piano and her vocals suited it well.
Tsubaki and trumpet, at sound check
During her set, I counted about 13 people in the room, which was about 13 more than what we had. Robb was quite nervous about the turnout. Both Cass and I tried to reassure him but it ending up not being too bad.
For the show, I brought my Avatar 2x12 with my Trace head. I'd done some back and forth during the day at home with the Trace vs the Orange and I just felt like the Trace won out. The tones I got at home were pretty gnarly and I liked them. However, once I got on stage, with earplugs in, too much bottom end, not enough mids. Really boomy. I adjusted the EQ on the Trace and that seemed to help (note to self: practice at home with earplugs in to sort of emulate sound on stage)
The rig
Once we started playing, there were more people in the room. I actually had 4 people come out, David and Paul from Pop Cycle, Dennis from SGs and Patrick also formerly from SGs. Knathan, who was also celebrating his birthday, had a handful of people there, so we gladly absorbed those people.
We started the night with our set closer, Darla's Song, because it's on keyboards. We pivoted that to opener as Tsubaki had done a keyboard set, so we thought that would be a good flow. It was a nice warmup for us. During the keyboard switch, I jumped on mic and worked on my stage banter. I think it's working? I just hope Cass and Robb aren't inwardly cringing. I guess it's better than dead air.
Anyway, we blew into Nomenclature from there and we were off. Unlike the last show at Tim's, I could really hear my vocals and felt good up there. We generally played quite well and had great interactions on stage.
Knathan and his band took the stage next, 6 pieces, with Aiyako on keys, Knathan on guitar and vocals, a drummer, bassist, lead guitarist and acoustic guitar/trumpet. I was not expecting them to be as powerful and tight and melodic as they were. Soundcheck wasn't super exciting, but once they unleashed, they were awesome. Knathan reminded me of the Hold Steady a bit, with lots of words, some horn and really thoughtful rock. All of us enjoyed them quite a bit and hope our paths cross again in the future.
Knathan Ryan and band
Also, I don't know who I am any more. I wore white shoes.
