make the muzik with yr mouth

Toronto, it's been grand.

We're poking around at Chuck's house. Pat ventured out in the interminable rain to get some health food provisions a little while ago. To be fair, it didn't rain yesterday until later, and we spent the bulk of our day off at another Midas learning more bad news about our brakes, that we thought were fixed forever in Colorado on our last U.S. tour. But apparently, if you do a bad job fixing the brakes, they never. quite. get. fixed..uggh. REFUND!

It might just be time to put the old girl down...

Things got better later once we hit Kensington Market, where it felt a little St. Marks NYC, a little hippie college main drag, and a little Jamaica, but better. Everything was closing down for the day, but the mashup of crusty punks drinking on the sidewalk, immigrants running souvenir shops and arty white people populating cafes made me feel like we were finally seeing another side to the city that we missed last time we were through.

Earlier we ate at Mitzi's and were interviewed by a 17-year old writer for the Singing Lamb. Her brother had made her a necklace out of t-shirt scraps that looked just like our stage decor, pretty rad. Definitely our youngest interviewer, and hopefully our unsolicited inspirational/guidance life advice wasn't too heavy...

At the interview, I ordered THE ULTIMATE BREAKFAST SANDWICH (their name, not mine). It was, in reality, a PRETTY GOOD breakfast sandwich, and featured kimchee, eggs, bacon and red pepper aioli. Bill is threatening to call me "KIMCHEE" from now on since we decided to have band nick names. His is "SNARE".

Both shows went off without a hitch, despite it being that generally crazy festival thing (NXNE) where we're trying to wire up all our piles of gear on a wet stage in half the time that it usually takes for all the cables and pedals to get connected while a harried sound person is trying to find where the DI box is buried. We have a lot of experience playing weird, rushed, no sound check situations it seems. It's usually ok, as long as there's not some bummer music being played over the PA before we play. But I digress, I think people liked it, and some kids came out a second time last night for our 2 AM set at The Silver Dollar Room. I kept cracking loungey night club jokes all night, but I don't think anyone got it..much like the other jokes I mumble when we play.

David Chapelle, Iam not. Maybe I am more like David LaChapelle??
So then my jokes are more like this--


Another weird thing that happened on this tour was because of this crappy place in Boston called PA's Lounge. I don't recommend anyone play there ever, and generally don't think people do play there or want to go there. Our show was fine, the sound guy was super nice, and this kid Nathan helped us jump on the bill last minute, but he ended up getting burned because the real booker wasn't there and the club takes the first $130 from the door for 'booking fees'. So he paid us $50 out of his own pocket because the club tried to give $45 to be split between 4 bands! None of the locals were paid and the other touring band were paid out of pocket too.

Pat had SOME WORDS with the owner about fairness and we went back to Mark's house a little dejected.

So guess what happens before our first Toronto show! Some ANONYMOUS bar owner in Boston calls Sneaky Dee's to tell them that we destroyed their club and will graffitti Sneaky Dee's too! Fortunately the bartender who answered the call is also a touring musician and thought the call was super petty, and even called the Beer Mug in Erie for us--where we're playing tonight-- to warn them about a crank call from this guy. WTF?

For the record, we don't tag bars. BORING.

And bands aren't just a reason to sell drinks.