December 7th: Day One: Pacific Northwest TOUR!
TRIP
Finally. All the planning, booking, van buying, practicing, pressing, promoting, and packing were done.
We, And a Few to Break, piled into our van, Sammy Davis Jr. Jr. Everything was clean and organized in the van. The engine and breaks were in tiptop shape and we were ready. We set out about 2pm for the Placebo in Eureka, California. http://www.theplacebo.net/
Taking 101 North up the coast was the quickest, most beautiful way to Eureka, but it was also the most dangerous because of its proximity to the windy, weather always changing coast. We had been warned of an incoming blizzard, so we busted our behinds to Eureka in order to arrive before the snowstorm and start the tour off with a show instead of a whiteout.
Luckily, the darkness and winding roads were the only things we had to deal with. We made it to a pizzeria about 15 minutes outside of Eureka/Arcata in about 5 hours and ordered a large pizza. While waiting, playing pinball, watching the NBA on a huge TV, and using the bathroom, we cracked open the local papers and saw that we and the show were mentioned in the Arts/Music sections of two papers. We felt good about this advanced press. At this point, we were more than ready to play after months of anticipation and a 5 hour drive.
The curious thing about a band touring is that they spend the majority of their time in a van/car/bus or in various timekilling spaces just to play 30-40 minutes of music and, at this point in our exisitence, to a crowd that could be huge or just the people who booked the show.
SPACE
Anyway, we left the pizzeria and found the Placebo pretty easily. When we arrived we found Eureka to be pretty dead and cold. Much of this had to do with the fact that we were playing a space in the warehouse district of Eureka.
As we walked up to the entrance we noticed a TV interview going on with one of the organizers of the show, Jasmine. Needless to say, we felt pretty good about the space and the show after reading about the show in two papers and witnessing an interview aking place about the Placebo.
The space itself was pretty similar to the all-ages spaces we have played. A warehouse with christmas lights, local artists showing their work on the walls, and a surprisingly nice PA.
When we walked in the staff welcomed us and showed us to load-in dock. We loaded-in, met the other bands, and waited for the show to started while trying to stay warm in the Placebo and Sammy Davis, Jr. Jr.
BANDS
We played with three local bands. The first was a local ska band, Two Time Good Fighter. They were nice young men and women who reminded me of my bandmates in high school. Enthusiastic, but nervous. Sam, Mark, and I started in ska/punk bands, but hadn't thought much about ska since those bands ended. Thank goodness for ska and its gateway drug tendencies. Its the music that gets all those band kids who play horns to think about playing music other than classical and traditional jazz.
The second band, Mega Total Violence, was a four piece (three piece on December 7) made up of one of the fellows who ran the Placebo, Brandon. They played a short set of instrumentals and screaming intense groove based rock. Their lead singer had the most amazing scream I have heard live in a long time. She began the set by playing keyboards, so when she stepped to the front of the stage to sing, none of us expected a velociraptor scream to come out of her mouth, but it did and it was amazing. We look forward to hearing MTV when they have their fourth member the next time we come through Eureka.
We played third. It was cold as hell, but we got warm pretty quickly. We had a nice crowd of people in the bands and people who came to see the second band and closer. It took us a couple of songs to get truly warm, but when you start a set balls to the wall, you tend to warm up quickly. We weren't sure if we would ever have a good enough PA to have all four of us sing, but from day one we did. Other than the PA cutting out during one of our favorite parts of "the Middle Passage", we were happy with the set and met a lot of nice enthusiastic people after the set.
Eureka proved itself to be a welcoming place. We met great people who were very appreciative of the fact that we drove all the way from San Francisco.
The final band, Laden Swallow, played a great set of straight ahead rock with amazing backing vocals. We were very appreciative of their willingness to let a touring band play in the middle of the bill. We never know who we are going to meet, but the guys in Laden Swallow were exceptionally nice.
Unfortunately, the Placebo's neighbors called the police who nicely asked that the show end abruptly. The area the Placebo is located in isn't zoned for live music, curiously though, it isn't zoned for apartment renters either.
The showed ended early, but everyone seemed happy with the night. We sold a bit of merchandise--our first t-shirts--and received an unexpected guarantee from the Placebo.
The number one reason to book all-ages community spaces: the people, the atmosphere, and the generosity.
Had we not had to drive to Bellingham for a show the next night, we would have staid in Eureka and undoubtedly had a wonderful night with the people we had met in Eureka, but, alas, we had to get on the road.
Thank you to the Placebo, Jasmine, Brandon, Jennifer (i think it was Jennifer from the Bay Area), MTV, Laden Swallow, Two Time Good Fighter, and Troy!
NEXT: Bellingham and the greatest people you will ever meet in life: Amanda and Ryan!
posted by And a Few to Break at 8:26 PM
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