2026-08-15 Planets in the Ocean at the Tractor Tavern

Made this on Canva

We were offered this show a few months ago and were pretty excited about it. I know nothing about the Divorce but both Cass and Robb had played with them a bunch when they were in Dear John Letters. Evidently they had a great draw in the early 2010s and played a bunch of great local shows back then.

I showed up at the Tractor around 6pm and double-parked behind a car that was already there. The Tractor has a loading dock in the back that they lock once the show starts. It makes things really handy to not have to find parking elsewhere, but it can be a bit challenging to get all the cars in there.

Cass and Robb were already there, as was Robb's awkward friend, Chris. Some of the Chimestone dudes were there as well. Good to chop it up with Cass for a bit. We talked about our plan for our set, less talking (for me at least; he's not on mic), and how we were going to play our new song, "Tourniquet."

I didn't know what to expect as far as crowds go, but as the doors opened, it seemed like Chimestone was having a good draw. I think all 5 of those guys are NHS grads, and their crew travels well. It seems like every time we play with them, they have a good crew showing out.

Teddy shared his bass rig, I was happy to use it. One less thing for me to be bringing around on a long day to begin with. He also had a beautiful Stingray that he was going to play, which ended up sounding just as good as it looked.

Teddy's rig and bass

Chimestone took the stage and played a competent set of REM-ish rock and roll. Frontman Jake came out on fire, working the stage with and without guitar, singing expertly. Ted on bass was solid throughout, tasty notes and playing all set long. Jonathan Plum, of course, was so solid as well, also adding killer harmonies during the songs. Paul was stellar behind the kit, driving with power and energy. I don't know the other guitarist's name, but he was great as well, tasty leads and playing. Enjoyed watching and hearing them for sure.

Chimestone at work

During Chimestone's set, we hooked up with a local photographer named Ian who had been sent by our bud Will. I asked if he'd be willing to take some non-performance pix of us and he agreed. We went to the loading area and stood/posed by some dangerous looking stacks of pallets while he snapped away. He ended up taking a bunch there as well as during the show. Hope those turn out to be cool!

We took the stage after Chimestone loaded out. Had to switch drum sets, but other than that, no big deal. I gave Dave the sound guy my IEM transmitter and he got bass and vocals into my ears. Had the bass rig on stage turned up as well and with hardly a word, Robb started into "Unraveled." Everything sounded great to me in my ears. Robb's vocals and guitar were loud enough that I didn't need any of his signal to the IEMs.

Unlike last show, I put the wireless pack on my strap and it was not going anywhere. My IEM receiver was opposite on my left hip, which would reduce any interference. I have new silicone ear tips from some old Skullcandy earbuds that create an awesome seal and didn't leak like my foam ones would if I smiled or laughed, so all my gear was working as it should. Until my left earbud popped out during "Unraveled." No worries, after the tune, I put it back in and we were golden.

We continued the set with "The Loud Silence," and then our nemesis from last show, "Nomenclature," and those all went off without a hitch. Robb or I didn't say much until after that song, so it was sort of refreshing.

We worked our way down the list and we were doing great. We sounded good, mistakes were low, crowd liked it and our energy was high. All the songs were fine until we hit "Holiday Daydream," where Robb forgot to do the chorus and went straight into the second verse. He's done that before, so we'll have to mention it again. Aside from that, though, everything else went well.

The last song was our new song, "Tourniquet." Robb brought it in a few months ago and it pretty much wrote itself. Over the past two rehearsals at the Rock Rooms in Ballard, we've really worked on it. It's pretty much a 3-part song: riff, verse, chorus. I'd like to come up with a bridge at some point, but it came together quickly and plays well. We may do have Tim jump on it when we play the SE show next month, but we'll see.

Got off stage and the Divorce jumped on after us. A very tight and pro 4-piece. A bit emo, a bunch rock and they looked great doing it. All 4 dudes were great musicians and the songs were well-received. They drew a nice crowd and had people singing to all their songs. At some point during the set, Robb made his way right up front and was pumping his fist and jumping along to the tunes!

The Divorce

During either of the other bands' sets, I chopped it up with Steve and Salena a bit, as well as Cass. We all got a laugh out of Chris and his tendencies. He means well, but I don't really want him to be running merch for us; one of us can handle that. He can help Robb schlep gear back and forth, I don't need his help with anything.

Got some props after the gig. Kim and her cousin gave me the best compliment, digging the white denim jeans I picked up the day before at Goodwill! Jimmy, the bassist in the Divorce, complimented my playing as faster than he can do; he has a Geddy Lee Jazz with a skinny neck to be able to play faster. We felt great about our performance, likely one of our best ones in a minute.

Had to beg Steve and Salena for pix. I think plenty of people took pix and video, but gotta be patient. Chris Elko was there and should have a video for us soon. And Ian's pix will be sent out soon I'm assuming. Other than that, felt great about it all. Sold a couple of limited pink LPs as well, so that's a bonus. We got a check for $566 (surprise!) so overall, a great night.

Next up, Cupcake on 9/11 at the Blue Moon?? Stay tuned.