Hola Friends,

We’re rolling east on 90 just near Madison, heading to the Double Door in Chicago for a two-night stint with our homey Bob Schneider and his band.  I’m currently eating tortilla chips and typing with one hand so it’s making this entry a little prolonged…..

Things are going well thus far.  We started the tour by busting our ass down to Saint Louis, rocking out in the Duck Room at Blueberry Hill, flirting with girls (post-show) on the side of the street, hopping in the bus, and heading back home.  Saint Louis was a whirlwind but we had fun….played a couple of new songs (which I’ll eventually post in the “Nobody’s Vault But Mine” section of the Music link) and rocked out with Saint Louis music man, Beatle Bob.  He’s a famed aficionado of all thing rock and roll and beyond and he was right up front chanting “electrifying!  outstanding!  oh my goodness!”  I asked him if we could take him home, but I think he’s grounded there.  It was funny and simultaneously eerie to think we were playing on a stage that Chuck Berry plays every other Wednesday.  But I went with it…a link in the chain….

It is official:  I am getting no sleep.  I’ve got to figure this out.  It’s about as pertinent to me as global warming is to a polar bear.  Even right now, I’m kinda having waves of fatigue/anxiety/sleeplessness.  Everyone keeps saying, “Just take some Tylenol PM or Benadryl” and yeah, I could do that.  But I don’t wanna get caught in that particular cycle so I’m hoping to stumble upon a more natural and reasonable solution.  But I definitely can’t sleep and it’s shitty.  And it’s not insomnia.  It’s some kinda control thing because the other night, I had some Tylenol PM in my hand and I didn’t wanna swallow them.  I was looking at them and realizing, “Oh, my problem’s that I don’t wanna go to bed in a moving vehicle….”  Uh oh.  I can trace it back though.  My family’s car collided head-on with a rogue tire on a high bridge when i was little and I remember thinking we were gonna drive off the bridge.  My mom reminds me that my dad handled the incident well but I must be still sorting it out in the “misunderstood” section of my young memory mind.  That’s all I can come up with.  Every time we brake, hit a bump in the road, or swerve, I feel like the county strongman is taking a hammer to the buzzer thingey at the local carnival.  Not good.  Anyway….sorry to waste your time on my fears.

So we rode all through the night and got to Minneapolis at 11 in the morning.  I slept for three hours and then headed to the Cities 97 offices for a chat and performance in Studio C with Jason Nagel (check out a couple of new photos in the Photo section).  That was pretty fun.  All I could do was squint in the bright lights, do my best to be articulate and legible, and not smell up the room with my funky road clothes….and attempt to stay in tune.  You know there’s something going on when you smell yourself and are mildly offended.  But I took a sink shower afterwards and headed to the Varsity Theater for a soundcheck.  LIke the kids say….it’s all good. (thanks to Jason Nagel, by the way, for having us).

The Varsity Theater show was a real blast—a little stressful due to the rigor of the schedule—but a blast nonetheless.  About two hours before every show, no matter how tired or distracted I am, I am fully re-enegized.  I could be in a head-on collision and have whiplash from hell and sure enough, if it’s in the two-hour before-show time frame, I’m okay. 

The show was packed—lots of friends and lots of soon-to-be friends.  I always thoroughly enjoy meeting new people who enjoyed the band’s performance.  That’s a real trip.  It’s one thing when your friends and family dig you no matter what.  It’s another thing when strangers from near and far approach you with energy, enthusiasm, and appreciation.  It really does affect me.  I met some dude named Alex who had just moved to the Twin Cities from Cape Cod and he was stoked to hear us and told me he’d tell his homeys in Boston about our upcoming show at the Paradise.  That was sweet.  And then….you know….we meet lots of women.  You can’t ever meet enough women…..but then again, I’m not like that .....so whatever.

It was a bit weird though….playing a homecoming show sandwiched in the middle of a tour.  I didn’t feel like I was home.  And after all, it wasn’t really my gig.  It was Bob’s and I mildly felt like we were somewhere else in some other time (although I totally love the Varsity).  The crowd in Saint Louis seemed to be really into our set and the space was cozy and then suddenly we’re in Minneapolis and playing to a ton of people and it feels like nobody’s moving around.  They’re watching.  I get it.  It seems sometimes people are into watching us…..I mean, there are a lot of peeps onstage….Tim’s grooving out….Wendy’s dancing all over….I’m sweating my ass off…Nick’s nodding his head up and down…Daryl’s making the “evil drummer” face”.....and my homeboy Eli is wearing size 20 shoes.  Perhaps it’s a lot for the eyes and ears to take in.  But still…..it does feel right when people are moving.  I mean….I feel like aside from the whole artistic endeavor of writing and arranging…..performances for me are about creating an experience and communicating and entertaining and dancing.  I hope I don’t sound like I’m negatively criticizing the crowd…..I’m not.  But when people are watching and motionless, I can sometimes feel like an animal in a zoo.  Woof woof.

Holy shit, this road is bumpy!  I had to stop typing for a second and crack the window to get some air. Whew.  Anyway…..Minneapolis was a lotta fun.  Can’t wait to play there again. 

On our way to Chiiiiiiiicago.  The Double Door.  Two nights.  Hey-O! 

See you soon…..

Take Care,
jason