Tour Update 1

El Paso - The Garage
Our time in El Paso surprised us.  
The turnout at The Garage was great, and the people and other bands were kind. A big thanks to Carmen and Jayden’s Playground for setting up the show…and a shout out to Jerome and Boom for letting us crash.
And giving us the VIP treatment at the midnight showing of Predators. 

Phoenix - The Lost Leaf
Phoenix greeted us with a blistering “you think Texas is hot?” 115 degree day. We spent some time in Tempe before the show.  

The venue was not what we had expected, but it was pretty rad.  The Lost Leaf is in kind of an artist community and is a gallery/bar converted from a nice 1940s Craftsman style house.  
Again, the crowd was great.  Thanks to Jordan for putting us up and cooking a fantastic breakfast the next morning! 

San Diego - The Ruby Room
This was the last show that we confirmed for the Tour.  Our new friends from Dreamtiger and The Foreign Resort got us on the show.  Everything seemed to be set, and we were excited for a great night.  
Parking. Easy. 
Load in. Smooth. 
Sound Check. Normal.
Post-Sound Check we heard…”You start in 10 minutes.”  Huh?  It’s only 830p.
Everyone has been promoting for 930.  The doors actually open at 9.  
So, yep.  We started before the doors opened.  Frustration. 
We expected this to happen…just not this show.  They ended up giving us some extra time. It turned out to be OK.  Not our best performance. We met some good people nonetheless.  Thanks to Jonathan for the hospitality.  

Los Angeles - The Cat Club The Viper Room
When the guy in blue jeans and black t-shirt showed up at The Cat Club around 9pm for open mic night and mentioned that they had not been open for a couple of Mondays in a row, I knew we were in trouble.

Rewind.

We arrived in L.A. on Monday afternoon excited to see friends and to play a show at The Cat Club that night.  Our new friend Carson Aune would play around 9p and we would follow.  We arrived at TCC on Sunset around 7:30p.  No place to park in front. There is a lot in the back.  It’s not good for loading in, but the man insists that bands pay him and we should give him $20.  We said we’d think about it.  We thought about it for about 1 second and left.  We took a right turn from the lot to make the block and try the front again, only to realize there are no blocks in the Hollywood hills.  We crept down a few streets and finally made our way back to the front.  And there was a spot. Sort of.  We waited for about 15 minutes, partially in a loading zone, for three thugs to quit loitering and get in their Volvo so that we could pull up and park fully legal.  JC and Ryan go to check in.  The door is locked but we are early.  So are a couple of guys who are patiently waiting to rock the 8:00p open mic.

Carson arrives.
A crowd gathers.
The club does not open.  Ever.

We are now charged with the new task of finding a venue to squeeze us in or a house to host a party.  On a Monday night.  Our friends are good.  They moved and shook the moonlit Sunset Strip and convinced The Viper Room to let us play.  They said we could play at Midnight for thirty minutes. Load-in at 11:30p.  It was now only about 9:30p.

We wait.
Rumors of other venues.  Maybe a house party.
Wait.
Wait.
Move the van down the street.  Unload.

Rumors that the show might get shut down because they can’t afford to staff that late on a Monday.  Rumors that we might only get 15 minutes.  We try to send in people off the street while our fans find their way.  In go a group of traveling Egyptians.  Then out they come.  They are too young.  We load in and set up, still concerned that the show will get shortened or shut down. We modify the set.  Press play.

Sunrise.  Let it be Morning. The Lion and the Bear.  We are the Hurting.  Giant Bird.

We finish happy, satisfied, and tired.
Casey approaches.  The bar wants us to play longer.
We reach into our pockets and pull out three more songs.  Press stop.
Our night in L.A. was somewhat surreal.  A bit movie-like (ironically).
Thankfully it was a good one.  

Muchas gracias to Carson, Casey, Jack, David, Chip, and everyone else who worked hard to make sure that everything worked out.
Now, through the golden mountains and green vineyards to San Francisco…

Here are some pictures that were shot by Casey Gooden.

Loretta has been great, too, if anybody is wondering.
Thanks for reading,
SSM