Only one tech flaw the entire night really...Oliver's effects chain decided it didn't want to deal with the heat any longer, so it sputtered out. Once he bypassed the loop he was back in business. Our hats went off to Solovus who played before us who were plagued by stage gremlins. One of the main breakers to the stage setup kept tripping, knocking out the power being fed to stage left countless times, killing their bass rig and lead guitar. In spite of this, they kept at it and gave it their all, showing that they truly have the minerals.
Ten songs were on the set list, and I only cut out "Years", because the evening was running late, and we knew we had to surrender some time to the headliners Metal Toyz. If you're keeping score, the set ran as follows:
- Lustre
- Tremble Bare
- OldNew
- With or Without You
- Exoskeleton
- Last Screams
- Other Door
- Country Spendor
- Beg the Past
No amount of effort could have kept us cool, so we just buckled down and did our jobs. People probably thought we were miserable, but we reveled in the heat and it seemed to propel us to play harder. Talking about it later, Joe and I agreed it was the best feeling performance since we had both last played a sweltering basement show. The energy was just phenomenal in spite of the weather conditions; we seriously could have played a second set. Val filmed a bit and Joe pieced together a cool montage with the material that can be viewed on YouTube.
Our next show on the books is a month out on Friday, September 17th at P.K.'s in Carbondale, IL. Our neighbors just to the north, Ravenhill, will be opening up the night. Our set will probably begin around midnight, so even if you work late you can still hook up with friends and come out for a great night.
And what's up with the album you ask? Obviously, we've had to take time out here and there to rehearse for live shows, but we're still plodding along with studio work. Our cellist is writing parts for "Restore"; drums need to be tracked for three more songs along with everyone else following suit; Dave is listening to what has been done and deciding where he'll lay down his guitar tracks; my vocals are pretty much wrapped on everything that is currently recorded, unless something else strikes me out of nowhere (which is usually the case.) --and the same applies to Scott; I still need to do some coloring with my guitar; Oliver still has a couple that he hasn't started on yet; And finally, the illustrious Dawne Lyon even visited rehearsal recently to take in the vibes and said she's ready to track vocals as soon we schedule a time. So there you have it.
Thanks again to everyone who endured the sauna this past Saturday at Whisker Willy's. Keep your eyes peeled for new dates outside of the September P.K.'s show. Don't forget to frequent our MySpace Page where you can still hear the single mix to "Tremble Bare", my YouTube channel, and also Joe's YouTube channel. Also, "Like" us on facebook and share us with your friends! Don't keep us all to yourself! Oh, and if you don't have "The Smartest Wall" from 2004, remember you can still get it in digital format at Amazon.com and iTunes, among other online retailers like Napster, Rhapsody, etc. One last thing: if you have any live shots of the band, please forward them our way! You can contact me at DEREKGCOOK (AT) GMAIL (DOT) COM.
Staying True,
DGC
