Mayday Release Show #86

It had been 5 months or so since we played and on Friday, June 7th 2013 we played our first show back @ The Riot Room for our Mayday EP release with Sons of Great Dane, Heroes + Villains, and Roman Ships (SD).  It was an overwhelming success. First and foremost, we want to thank all of friends, family and everyone who came out in force that night. Thank You for making our night!

 Here is the breakdown of the evening:

Sons of Great Dane opened up and sounded every bit as good as they always do. These gentlemen are spot on, all day, every day. They killed it, properly. 

Next up were Roman Ships from South Dakota. These guys are friends with Sons of Great Dane and they were a breath of fresh air. Very good, organic and the drummer jus kills. I actually forgot to thank them while we were playing. SPACE-CASE. Sorry dudes!!!!!

Post Roman Ships was owned by Heroes + Villains.  If you like your music with some serious pop appeal along the lines of Keane, look no further. Ryan, Drew and the other fine gentlemen are what we call  "Pro-giggin" round these parts. We played with Heroes + Villains many years ago when they were known as The Walter Alias and it totally brought me back to those days. 

And finally, we went on around midnight, played all of "Mayday" then some real new songs, then some old songs.   After an hour our so we ended the set with New York and even threw in an unplanned encore with a newer song called start again. 

All in all, this was a good night.

See ya around,

Gene

Shows 80, 81, 82, 83, 84 and 85

The last 6 shows we played, I can't even remember.  It's pathetic, I know. They were before our 5 month hiatus to finish Mayday and write/record a new record.  That seems like a lifetime ago but I wanted to keep track of these things and thought I would put this "placeholder: in.  What I do know, was that we played these shows, probably drank alcohol, and at some point even broke up and got back together a few times. Just call us "drama".  Oh well, at least the life force is strong with us. Sometimes too strong.

Keeping it Rrrrrrrreal.  

GA

Shows # 77, 78 and 79

It's been a while since I have written about a show s​o I thought it was time I would play catch up yet again.   I'm running out of things to write about! We showed up, we played, blah blah blah blah.  And the real interesting things I really can't write about because I'll likely offend too many people. Boo hoo. So, I'll keep it brief. This time we'll cover the last 3 shows:

1. ​Czar Bar Acoustic Show
   
2. Beaumont Club with TRAPT​
3. ​Riot Room with The Atlantic, Monarchs of Speed and Medicine Theory
   

​First, the Czar Bar acoustic show went off like all of the other acoustic shows we do. Ryan and I have some drinks and play some songs. Yes, these are usually intimate affairs with an adoring crowd of 10-20 of our friends. Not that I am complaining, these shows are always low stress and for the most part, enjoyable. This show was not much different. It was a benefit for The Kansas City Pet Project that my wife's charity, Friends of KC Animals put on. We raised some $ for the local animal shelter cause we love the animals, ya know?

The next show was another somewhat strange paring for us (once again, no complaints!) . We were slotted as the opener for TRAPT at the Beaumont club. None of of weren't too familiar with this band above and beyond vaguely remembering a song they had a radio what seems like a decade ago.  None the less, we were on a bill with another national act and we're completely happy and about that.  We played to an enthusiastic crowd at the Beaumont Club and were received well.  The show was a success and lots of our merchandise was sold.  Most interesting about this crowd was the fact that so many people came up to talk to us after the show.  It's always awesome to see people go out of their way to talk to someone in a band they liked and we appreciate it!  It was a good night.

Last but not least, was a show at The Riot Room with The Atlantic, Monarchs of Speed, and Medicine Theory. I'll start out with the fact that I completely missed The Atlantic's set which bummed me out. They were the first band on the bill and to be honest they should have been right before us.  We won't let that happen again! Next up were Monarchs of Speed from Omaha, who we will be playing a show with in a few weeks up there. These guys had a different thing going on which was great to see and did a good job. After that Medicine Theory played a two-person, extended set that lasted well past midnight.  We took the stage at a ripe 12:30 to 1:00AM to a very good sized crowd and we were off to the races.  I have to be honest, it was a rough one for us. Nothing catastrophic but we were definitely not in our usual form. I won't make excuses either. Luckily for us,  the crowd was well into a night of power drinking and I think it's safe to say everyone watching enjoyed our set. Thanks to Miller Geniune Draft and Pabst Blue Ribbon for saving us! 

Well, that's all folks. We have a bunch of shows booked in the next few months. We hope to see you at one or all of them! ​

Gene​

Show 76: Evanescence @ The Midland

Show #76 was the best show experience we have had as a band hands down. We were fortunate enough to be given the opportunity to open up for Evanescence at The Midland, which is seriously my absolute favorite venue in Kansas City.  Needless to say, all of us were excited to play this show. 

We showed up at The Midland during Evanescence's sound check and they sounded quite massive. After they  finished we were led back to a dressing room (another first for us) and treated like a touring act with all the bells and whistles. We meet the second band, Weaving the Fate, who are exceptionally nice dudes. After their sound check, we loaded in, setup our gear and went through a couple of songs for sound check.

We hung out in the backstage area for a while then we went outside of the venue and were  surprised to see a line around the block full of people waiting for doors to open. We obviously knew Evanescence was a huge band but what we didn't know was that this was their first tour in 5 years. Bonus! We went back inside and chatted with the Weaving the Fate guys and Will, the Drummer for Evanescence. After that, I had a brief conversation with Tim McChord about old Sacramento, CA bands. Tim was previously in Quitter and The Revolution Smile but has played Bass with Evanescence for the last 7+ years. Shortly thereafter, Amy Lee came out and introduced herself to us. She was a sweetheart in every way.  In fact, everyone in Evanescence and Weaving the Fate were as cool as it gets. 

About 30 minutes before we were scheduled to go on at 8:00PM sharp, we took a peek out front. And to our surprise, the place was quite full. Not what we expected at all for the opening act. As our start time drew closer, all of us were feeling the butterflies on a level we have not before. In the moments before we took the stage we were standing side-stage and my heart was poounding. I felt like we were about to take off in a rocket ship or something. In the weeks leading up to the show, I assumed this would be like every other show to some extent.  Despite what I thought, I was feeling something completely different. 

With that, the lights went out and we walked onto the stage. The crowd roared, and so began our 30 minute set of 8 songs.  I felt like we played well and the audience response invoked an awesome feeling for all of us. We played several new songs and they were received well. It's always a great feeling to connect with people at any show, especially a show like this one. By the time it was over it felt like it was only a total of 2 minutes long.  But what a great 2 minutes it was...

Next up were Weaving the Fate who worked the crowd over proper.  They did a great job and their rhythm section was insane. After their set was over, the stage transformed into the backdrop for Evanescence and the lights went out.

A packed Midland was eagerly anticipating the band they came to see. And let me tell you, Evanescence delivered. This band's show and production is the blueprint for what a touring, professional, mega-act with millions of fans show should be.  I think it's safe to say their fans were more than satisfied. 

At the end of the night, we spent the time after the show talking to people at our merch booth on their way out and we were overwhelmed by the kinds words so many people at the show had to say about us. Ryan and our friend Pat went backstage to gather the remainder of our a stuff and ran into Amy and Will. Once again, they were incredibly nice and unpretentious.  Amy said she really enjoyed our set. I later found out she watched from stage left the entire time we played.  How cool is that? Most people in her position would be hanging out in their dressing room not giving a shit about the opening bands. Not her, she and her entire band are a class act. Much respect.

This was easily the best night we have had as a band, ever. And I think it's safe to say we are ruined for life. How can we go back to bars after this? :-) Can someone put us on a tour already? We're cheap dates and we promise to be excellent tour companions. 

We would like to thank:

Mike, Ryan and everyone at AEG for making this possible

Evanescence, tour staff and management for having us

Weaving the Fate

Jeff Pickman, Sound Magician and 5th Member

Neill Smith, for making this happen

Everyone at The Midland for being so hospitable

Rachel Brown for working the merch booth

Pat Doyle for Cheerleading and All around good time

Jimmy Allen for being the ambassador to the stars

And last but not least, everyone who came to the show. You were awesome.

Till Next Time,

Gene

Shows 73 , 74 and 75: R,B,R.

Shows 73, 74 and 75 went by in a flash during the month of April. Here is my recollection:

Show 73 went down as part of "Middle of the Map Fest" here in Kansas City. This is the sophmore year of this festival and it's an event that has been wildly successful since inception. Local/regional bands are paired with nationals such as "Fucked Up", "Fun", etc.

This year, all of the "not quite indie enough", "Rock" bands were paired together on a playdate, er I mean say show at Ye Old Faithful (The Riot Room).  Not that we are complaining as we were playing with friends and bands we like.  After all, we shared the bill with The Slowdown, In the Grove, and Cherokee Rock Rifle which is most certainly a damn fine show. It was a rainy day and the bill was split with the first two bands (The Slowdown and In the Grove) playing inside and the last two bands (Us and CRR) playing outside on the patio.

When we arrived at the venue, our friends The Slowdown were playing and I have to say, these fellas laid it down "JUST NICE" (in an Ashley Schaeffer voice). They sounded absolutely fucking great. And they were playing to a formidable crowd. Next up, were In The Grove who also slayed out a monster set and sounded really good.After that, we kicked off the patio festivities.  We played a 40 minute set to a crowd of good and on-the-way-to-getting-really-drunk folks.  It was a good time and the weather played nice so we had no complaints. Next up, Cherokee Rock Rifle laid it down to proper as always to a full patio.  All things said, the day was a success, rock prevailed, this needs to happen again.

Show 74 was a show at The Beaumont Club with prog rockers David Hasslehoff on Acid for their CD Release and Live DVD filming. We were really happy to be a part of this show as it was something different than we usually do which is always a bonus. There were several bands on the bill that night and I wish I could remember them all but I really can't comment.  It was one of those nights for me as I was on the cusp of getting sick which is never fun. I do remeber a strange happening while wewere playing: some kid threw some sort of a laminate pass towards me and then ran off while we were playing. I planned on channeling a sick Josh Homme and addressing it right there and then but by the time the song was over, I had forgotten about it. Oh well...

After we played we watched Cherokee Rock Rifle make some magic on stage followed by a very badass and cinematic David Hasslehoff on Acid show.  I'm not usually into their type of instrumental, progressive rock but they do what they do well and I really enjoyed the show.  I also commend these guys for doing their own thing. Add to that the fact that the DHOA guys are some of the nicest musicians in the city, and you have something to be really proud of.

Show 75 was a weeknight at The Riot Room with Traindodge and Drop a Grand. The show started early with Drop a Grand who are abstract and tongue in cheek at the same time. I remember exclusively lucite guitars, masks, and lots of commentary.

We were up second and I really feel like we played a solid show. We had a lot of fun playing and it sounded very badass due to our friend and fifth Beatle, Jeff Pickman behind the board. Mission Accomplished!

Last but not least, were Traindodge. This band has been doing it for a DAMN long time and it shows everytime I see them. This is the second or third time we have played with them and once again they pummeled through a massive set to an enthusiastic audience.  Their drummer is so good I would swear he is from Kansas City :-). All in all, I'm happy we opened for these dudes becuase I wouldn't want to follow them. If you like your rock loud and haven't checked these guys out, you need to.

Show 73, Video, Radio and Everything Else

Greetings!

It's been a busy few months for us and we wouldn't have it any other way. Lots of things happening and it feels good. First off, I'd be lying if I told you I even remembered much about show #73. We played with Maylene and the Sons of Disaster which seemed like a strange bill for us to be on but who are we to complain? We played, we drank, we laughed, we cried. All in all another WFS show.

In other news we released a video for "Sign of the Times" and simultaneously went to national radio with the song as well. This is a first for our band on both fronts and so far, they have both been good moves!

The video was created and executed by the brothers Ryan and Chad Chamberlain of Basement Productions. What can we say, these dudes and crew were a complete pleasure to work with. Hell, they did all the work! And most importantly, they delivered what we all think is a pretty bad ass video! And the response has been nothing short of awesome. If you haven't seen it already should check it out on the Video page.

The radio campaign for Sign of the Times has been a complete blast for us too. In just a few weeks we have managed to get added into rotation at several radio stations across the country and in fact, as I write this we are the #79 on the Mediabase active rock chart.  The week beforee that it was at #85 and the week before that one at #90-something.  We're not quite sure what that means but we think it is a good thing! Along with the radio, Sign of the Times has been in many "cage match" type radio contests and we have been winning them thanks to our many good friend's support! THANK YOU!

We have some kick ass shows coming up and even more exciting things in the works. We would like to thanks everyone who has supported us in the past and all of you who continue to do so. We appreciate it beyond words.

Gene

Show 72: The Life and Times

Show 72 was a good one. One of our favorite bands, The Life and Times, were kicking of a new record and a new tour at The Riot Room in Kansas City. We were fortunate enough to open the show.  Major Games (members of Zoom and Panel Donor) were also on the bill making this a pretty kick ass lineup.

We opened the show around 10PM to a good crowd of folks. We played a few older tunes, some current stuff and even some new tunes. This was a godo show for us. We felt very on that night and we were very happy with our show overall. More importantly, we made some new friends and exposed some new people to our band. Mission accomplished.

Major Games followed us and slayed through a blistering and incredibly loud set. I enjoyed their performance quite a bit and they have to take the cake for the loudest band I have seen in a while. But, it wasn't too loud becuase I'm not too old......yet.

The Life and Times went on last to an enthusiastic crowd and needless to say, they killed it as expected. This band is a three piece that sounds like a 10 piece and we highly recommend you check them out if you haven't already.

All in all, this was a great show and we were very happy to have played it.  As we write new material and finish up our new EP, the vibes are good. We always try to raise the bar on what we are doing and it feels good to make progress.

Thanks to:

The Life and Times

Neill Smith

Jeff Pickman

The Riot Room

Gene

Show 71: WFS and SI

Show 71 was setup to be a good time. Me and my good friends Paul, Bill, and Mark were resurrecting our old band from the 90's, Sacrifice Isaac, for one night only and the first time in 13 years (almost to the day) at the Riot Room. For those of you that aren't familiar with the band, I played bass with these guys from the time I was 19 years old and learned / went through a lot with these fine gentlemen.

We (WFS) went on at around 10:30 and I have to be honest, I felt really sick by that time. Apparently downing 2 red bulls when you rarely drink them before a show is a bad idea. Who knew? :-) But the show must go on, and it did. It was cool to see a lot of old SI friends in the audience, many of which had never seen WFS before. Despite my condition, I think it was a good show. But what do I know?!

Once we were done, it was Sacrifice Isaac time. Almost 13 years ago to the day, SI played our major label debut and cd release party at this same club ( called The Hurricane back then). Pretty crazy. Back in 1998 we were embarking on a journey that we hoped would lead us to careers in music and things certainly seemed pointed in the right direction. But like most stories of bands on major labels, the dream didn't come to fruition as we had hoped. Shit happens!

And now back to out regular programming:

I can't say that I wasn't nervous but I was stoked because by the time the previous set was over, I no longer felt like shit. Bonus!
We took the stage at 11:30ish and began the journey through our set and back in time to the 90's. People were into it, everyone was playing well and most importantly, it was really fun. We played 10 songs total, five off of our first record and five off of our last one. It all went off without a hitch, after 13 years, with one week of rehearsals. Not to bad if I don't say so myself.

All in all, the four of us were really pleased. And I do believe the quote of the night during the show goes to William Mitchell: "for those of you that don't know, we're a band from the 90s!!". It was like we had just stepped out of a time machine.

This was a one night only experience for us and although we are all still best of friends, it was great to do this thing together one more time.

Till Next Time,

Gene

SHOW #70: HELMET, S2R and US

Show number 70 was a good one folks. We were very excited and honored to be sharing the stage with Helmet and Season to Risk in one night and I have to say, it was as good as we thought it would be.  The crowd was great, the bands delivered blistering sets (as expected), and everyone was cool.  Even Paige Hamilton.  We heard the stories that he could be real difficult but we're here to say those stories are 100% bullshit.  In fact, he was probably one of the nicest, humble guys in a band of that caliber I have ever been around. The guy spent a lot of time post-show signing autographs, taking pictures, and talking to everyone. Good dude!

Bottom Line: I felt like we played a solid show. We felt comfortable and it was great to see so many new faces up front and center. It felt really good. If we could play shows like this all the time, we would be very, very happy guys. Is that too much to ask?  We might even start writing happy songs. (we don't know any major progressions) Until then, we'll stay dark and depressed.

Thank You to:

Helmet

Season to Risk

Jeff Pickman for bangin' sound

Neill Smith for booking

The Riot Room

Pat for manning the booooooth!

Eric Binkley for taking the picture above

and everyone how took home shirts, discs, stickers. We appreciate your kinds words and support!

- Gene

Show #69: recordBar

Show #69 went down at the recordbar last Saturday night as planned. Good times, great people but a little sparse. Yes, folks this was a very minimal show and we have no one to blame but ourselves.   For years I have been vocal about feeling like too many bands in KC don't know how good we have it: Several venues, decent scene, etc.  Yet some of the bands pull the "it's all rock n' roll" card and don't promote or really do anything beyond showing up and playing a show.  And of course, here we are pulling the same shit. We promise to promote our shows better from now on. Scout's honor.

Now that the negatron has spoken, I'll get to some random facts/highlights/realizations. Here is an abreiviated version:

1. Redtail Hawks were very good
2. We decided to get tipsy before we played "just to see what would happened"
3. Brent can't read set lists written in red ink
4. I actually got to say "I'll light your titties up" in a public forum
5. We love the recordBar and wish it was open until 3AM.

We would like to thank everyone at rB for having us again and most importantly everyone that came out. We appreciate your support and promise to have laminates for every one of you someday when we grow up, make it big and go on an arena world tour.

Next Show: with HELMET and Season to Risk @ The Riot Room on October 25th!!!!! It's going to be a barn-burner!

- Gene

Shows 67 and 68: Acoustic / Electric

The weekend for before last was a big deal here in the Kansas City area because a new event was going down called Kanrocksas. We know, the name is pretty awful. But the lineup wasn't. This event was two days of music (Muse, The Flaming Lips, The Black Keys. A Perfect Circle, Eminem, Arctic Monkeys.Primus. Ween, Flogging Molly, and many more) held in the middle of a Nascar race track.  You gotta love the Midwest :-)

We were given the opportunity to play an acoustic set in the VIP area along side several other local bands on the INK Unplugged stage and of course we jumped on it.  We arrived at the race track that evening and made our way to the VIP area. It was a massive area with very few people by context.  After the band that was on finished it was our turn so Ryan and I setup and started to play about 10 minutes before we were originally scheduled. 

It was quite an intimate performance. There was a crowd of one person (who happened to be our bass player, Brent) watching us.  And after about 1 and 1/2 songs super loud techno/dubstep/whatever you call it began on the main stage, directly behind us.  So there we were, two guys with acoustic guitars playing to no one while a DJ's set is blasting us out.  We played another 5 songs and finished what we started. 

Needless to say, not one of our finer shows, but we'll chalk it up to "character building". The next night we heard that someone at the show said we just quit and walked off instead of playing?!  Pretty fucking sad. Oh well, it's not the first or the last time that shit has been talked about our band.  It's just fuel for our fire. On a lighter note, we'd like to thank Chris H. and INK magazine for having us out.

The next night, we had a polar opposite experience at recordBar with our friends, Maps for Travelers. This was a last minute show that was put together and although the turnout wasn't great, both of our bands played like the place was packed. It sounded absolutely killer (thanks to Paul Malinowski), and it was a damn fine show. We really enjoyed playing that night and it really helped us wipe away the funk of the previous night.  recordBar is the place, for sure.

Big thanks to Maps for Travelers , Steve Tulipana for putting the show together, and the recordBar staff for being badasses as usual.  It was a good night, and we'll have to do it again soon.

- Gene

Show 66: Riot Room Patio Meltdown

Greetings,

A few weeks back we played the Riot Room patio for the first time (as a band, that is).  All of us were really excited to play Zi Patio with a bunch of great KC bands (Sons of Great Dane, Cherokee Rock Rifle, and The Slowdown). Good Times were ahead of us.

When we arrived at RR the patio felt good, it wasn't too terribly hot and I was quite fine. Shortly thereafter, people started showing up and it started getting rrrrrrrrrrreal fucking hot. I'm not complaining, I'm just saying.

Sons of Great Dane opened the show and as usual, these dudes were solid.  I like this band more and more everytime I see them and I liked them to begin with so there. High Five!

Next up were our friend's the Slowdown. These guys showed up in full trailer-drag. Jean-shorts, staches, tank tops, America! It was quite a sight to see. We have played many shows with these fellas but on this night I heard a bunch of material I had not before. I remember it being almost psychedelic? Maybe they were "influenced" by something? I don't know for sure, but a man can speculate. Another good band brought it correct.

Next up was our lot. But we had a small dilemma. Our equipment was at the back of the patio, the stage was at the front, and a mass of drunk, hot people were in the middle.  Ah the joys of being in a band :-) Actually. I'm being a bit dramatic. It really wasn't that bad and could have been a lot worse.....

We played a set of predominantly new songs to a good crowd of very awesome people that braved the heat and stayed out there. I think the set went off fairly well and although not perfect, there were no major catastrophes. Close enough for rock n' roll. After we finished it was time to beat our livers up: Bartender!

Last but not least, Cherokee Rock Rifle hit the stage and blazed through a monsterous set complete with good tunes, an energetic live show, fire, and something I had not yet seen ever at the Riot Room: Dutch (The Duke as we like to call him) had disappeared from the stage during an instrumental number and reappeared way up on the roof.  It was quite unexpected and although writing about it may not  do it justice, it was quite badass in person. All hail "The Duke"!

Overall the night was a success for everyone involved.  We need to do more shows like this and more often.

- Gene

Show 65: Another night, another show

 Show 65 was "aight".  Good times, great oldies, you know ther drill.  We had some technical difficulties along the way but it's all rock n' roll.  It's still fun for us to play new songs and thats all that matters right now.  We had a few drinks, played a show, then went home. Some of us went home that is. Others didn't make it there until the next morning/afternoon but that is a long and involved story....

Since this show we have been busy at our rehearsal space with our heads down in it. We have been going through a 13-14 song set many times per week and getting back on the old horse. I fear we got a little lazy over the past few months and we can't have any of that. So we have been doing it over and over again. It's been a good exercise. We have also been writing again and I am very excited with the latest song we have banged out. We can't wait for you to hear them!

We are also in the midst (Still) of vocals on 6 new tunes to be releases sooner than later. Our schedules have been a bit crazy and we havn't been able to put in the time needed to "turn this mutha out" as MC Hammer used to say. OVer the next few weeks, that is EXACTLY what we are going to do.  We need to birth this thing already!!!

Till Next Time,

- Gene

Show LXIV: Davey's Uptown Ramblers Club - 2011

They guy in the picture is our Bass Player, Brent Kastler aka The Scunt Whisperer. The bass tracks he laid down on our new recording are HOT.  Just wait, you'll hear what I'm talking about. Just sayin....

Show 64 happened the weekend before last at Davey's Uptown Ramblers Club.  It was an "intimate" affair but an affair none the less. We played with our friends Maps for Travelers and then proceeded to get drunk. Some of us more than others but I'm not calling anyone out (Ryan Bates). All in all, it turned out to be a good night that will be worth repeating. We look forward to doing it again soon.

Next show is this Friday @ The Riot Room for the Local Artist Overthrow. We hope to see you there!

Show 62: SXSW 2011 MidCoast Takeover

Last week, our band (and 30 or so other KC bands) headed to Austin, TX for this years South by Southwest and more importantly, The MidCoast Takeover which is a showcase of Kansas City bands put on at The Liberty, a bar on East 6th street. We were scheduled to play on Saturday night at this showcase as well as a show on Thursday at another venue, but we'll get to that in a moment.

We were obviously excited to play during SXSW in Austin so we made all the usual preparations and plotted our trip accordingly. We even decided to bring some backup with us in the form of the one and only, Patrick Doyle. For those of you that know Pat, we need say anything else. For those of you who do not, just imagine a slender, fiery man of Irish descent with lighting fast wit, a heart of gold, and a proclivity towards getting naked in public. That's all we are allowed to say but I think you get the picture So on Wednesday, all five of us headed down to Austin. We made it down there without an issue and rolled into our friends place where we were staying.   That night we went out and surveyed the Liberty, had some drinks and called it a night. 

The next day, we woke up and began the journey to our first gig in Austin, TX scheduled to be at 2:50PM at Thunderbird Coffee. We got to the Thunderbird and the first band was setting up already.  To be honest, this wasn't what we expected. It's basically just a coffee shop, not a venue. But, we were down to play it anyway. As we unloaded our gear onto the front lawn of the Thunderbird in the baking Austin sun, all of us were just happy to be playing that day.  Unfortunately, that wouldn't happen. As soon as the first band was finished, a couple of authoritative looking portly men showed up in what looked like police uniforms but weren't. They were the bar/license cops. Apparently, neither the Thunderbird nor the promoter bothered to spend the time getting a permit for the shows that day. The show was shut down. Bummed out, we packed up our shit and went back to where we were staying. We tried to contact the promoter and get on another show but we got no call back. So with that, James Taylor at Giant Steps Promotions: FUCK YOU.

Over the next few days, we hung out at the Liberty and got to check out a ton of bands. It's funny that we traveled to Austin to see a bunch of KC bands but it was awesome nonetheless. We also got to hang out with many of our friends and make some new ones as well.  Many good times were had.

On Saturday night, it was a supermoon and our MidCoast show was scheduled to happen at 9:00PM which it did without issue. We went on and played a 30 minute set. We had a few technical difficulties during our show and it wasn't the best we have played but I have to say, it felt quite awesome to be there and we were received well.

This was an incredible experience for us.  W got to hang out with so many of our friends and people we usually don't get the chance to and everyone was super cool throughout the showcase. No egos, no bullshit, just real.   For the first time , we felt like we were part of a collective made up of other musicians/bands in Kansas City rather than just one band.  It's odd that this happened in Austin, TX but we are glad it happened. That is something we need more of in Kansas City.

We would like to give a big thanks to:

• The Midwestern Music Foundation and EVERYONE who worked so hard to put The MidCoast Takeover together.  This was a monumental task and you planned and executed this better than anyone could have. It was just fucking magical.

• Our friend John Mann, Mossberg and Vandal for letting 2 + bands crash at your place all damn week. You are a saint!

• Our friends, Uncle Stan, Drew, Austin, Joe and Jeremy of The Slowdown (a band you should check out) for helping us with some technical difficulties at the show. 

• Casey and all the staff @ The Liberty for going above and beyond with our band and making us feel like we were right at home in Kansas City.  We love you.

• And last but not least, Pat Doyle for all of your hard work, the many laughs, and non-lethal doses of insanity. Friends 4 life.

Show 61: Back to the Future

Last Friday night we played at The Riot Room for the first of four 2011 SXSW MidCoast Takeover Benefit shows.  This was our first show back as a full band in a few months. We have spent this time crafting new songs in our rehearsal space, downing them after we decide they are not good enough, and writing some newer songs.  Ahh the sweet joys of band song writing :-) 

We were really excited to get out and play a set of predominantly new songs. And that we did. We took the stage around 11:30 to a well occupied Riot Room and rolled through our set of new tunes.  And it felt really good.   The energy in the room was good, the new songs went over well, and everything just felt right. I have to say this show was the most fun I have had at one of our shows in recent memory.   I can say that right now, all four of us feel like we are in the next chapter for our band.  Progress is a beautiful thing.  Next up: South by Southwest. All aboard!

Thanks to everyone who made it out last Friday. You made our night.

- Gene

Show 60: The Latest Entry of Them All

So about a month ago, Ryan and I played show #60. This one was another all-acoustic show for us. We played at Crosstown Station with Red Line Chemistry. Long story short, it was a fun show to play and we were happy to be on the bill. I distinctly remember the night ending with a lot of alcohol and some debauchery so in that respect, good times! It was also nice not to have to load gear which, for us, is about the only thing we really like about playing acoustic.  I think we'll take a break from that nonsense for a while and get back to all things loud.

Speaking of which, we have  recorded all the music for 5 new tunes. We begin recording vocals this week followed by some travel time followed by a show and then we'll finally finish these. Will it be a demo? Will it be an ep? I don't know. But we have also continued to write and I am liking the new new material even better than the 5 we have yet to finish recording. It might be time for a full length. Or maybe a single per week for 3 months? Thoughts? Anyone......Bueller?  We will be playing a lot of new stuff at the shows coming up some come out for the 411.

- Gene

Show 59: All was fine in St. Louis and a quick update

Hey Hey Hey-

A quick update but first thing is first, the last show we played was almost a month ago (holy shit!) on November 5th at the Fubar in St. Louis with our friends MACHREE.  If any of you were at our last Riot Room show, these guys were also playing.  This show was an all ages show which I was personally stoked about and in fact, the first all ages show we have ever played if my memory serves me correctly which of course it never does.  There were several other bands before us most of which were much younger than us.  One of the more memorable bands was a group of 17-18 year-old kids that looked like they just stepped out of a Whitesnake video circa 1986. I am not kidding, either.  I was actually really excited to see them because if they sounded like they looked, it may have been the best 80's hair metal revival I had ever seen. Unfortunately, they didn't and it wasn't. But I thought I would share anyways.  We played later in the evening and all I will say is that the show validated the fact that we need to play more all ages shows. Simply put, we had a great time. MACHREE played a bit later to a packed house and those guys brought the goods in front of their home town. Really great show and great to see them. St. Louis was a success.

Now back to our original programming:

We have been writing new material and we are very excited about it! We wrote some songs, killed some songs, wrote some more songs and we are still cranking them out. We really feel like this is the best material we have done to date and we cannot wait to get out there and play them live. But first, we will be recording some demos and then a new EP.  However, we promise to share along the with all of you.  We appreciate everyone's continued support and look forward to seeing you in 2011.

Have a safe and happy holiday,

Gene / Ryan / Brent / Justin

Shows 57 and 58: Riot Mouse

So here we are again with another installment of a better late than never account of our last two shows. For some reason, I am finding it more and more difficult to post these in a timely fashion.  In any event, I hope to break my vicious cycle of procrastination and get into the habit of "Taking Care of Business" as Elvis so eloquently coined it.

On Friday, October 15th we played once again at The Riot Room. This time around we were playing with Le Grand from Lawrence, KS, Machree from St. Louis and Maps for Travelers who were releasing their debut EP at this show. This was a really fun lineup to be a part of as all of the bands were very good and IMO, complimentary to each other.  This was also the first time I had seen all three bands we played with and I was impressed by all of them. Double Bonus.

We were 3rd on the bill and played to a good crowd.  We played a few new songs and they went over well from what I could tell which is always nice and validating (Yes!, We ARE going to be rich!!) . We hope to incorporate more new material into the set in the future. Overall, I thought our part of the show went over well. No casualties, no accidents and I believe it was 100% OSHA compliant....

After we played, Maps for Travelers ended the show. It was especially awesome to finally see Maps for Travelers. They tore it up and when you can do that AND include a trumpet, there is nothing left to say.  Although we were loading out for part of their set, I did catch a good amount of it and it was really good. We intend on playing shows with those fellas again reeeeeeeal soon.

All in all, another good night at The Riot Room. Ah, the comforts of home.

Last Saturday, we played a Halloween show at a place and city we have never played before: The Trouser Mouse in Blue Springs, Missouri.  This is a local watering hole that has bands play of all varieties. It's also the place where our drummer, Justin works. We were playing the show with another Blue Springs native band, In the Grove for whom Justin used to play drums with.  This incestuous lineup was opened up by a very strange yet somehow entertaining singer/songwriter/comedian named Paul Somethingorother (I can't remember).  What I can remember was that his songs had somewhat unusual stories and titles.  Some of what I remember was: "Blue Springs Pussy" and a song about hitchhiking back across the country to rendezvous with a lost love and having to go down on a trucker to get there. Wow. I can't believe I just repeated that. But rest assured, I am not joking. That was 100% for real.

On top of the strange opening act, I was very worried about Ryan. Let's just say he wasn't feeling too good before the show. So here we were, in Blue Springs. I gotta say, it was strange. In fact, it was almost as if we somehow diverged from the current space-time continuum into an alternate reality.  We went on about 10:30ish and amazingly Ryan pulled it through like Keith Richards after a night of partying in the 2nd hour of a Rolling Stones set. It was as if he felt 100% from the moment we started playing. The man, the myth, the legend: Ryan Bates.  We played the show to a small gathering of people. Although it wasn't ideal, everyone at The Trouser Mouse was very cool and treated us well.

Thanks to everyone who came out to both shows.

-  Gene

Shows 55 and 56: We're not in Kansas anymore

This Friday and Saturday we played a couple of shows both of which were coincidentally located in the state of Kansas.  Home to Dorothy, Toto, The Reverend Fred Phelps and a Nascar track. I also must admit, it's  also where Ryan, Brent and I grew up.  So at least the state has that going for it :-)

On Friday, we played at The Replay Lounge in Lawrence, Kansas. For those of you not from the area, Lawrence is home to the University of Kansas and is a very cool town. It's been a town that has had a great music scene and venues forever. The Replay Lounge is a small but important venue that has been there for as long as I can remember. We have played the Replay a few times before if my memory serves me correctly but until last Friday, never when school was in session.  As we made our way down the main drag in Lawrence, the city was alive. It looked like a carnival on every street corner. It had been a long time since any of us had been there during the school season and it was really great to experience this town again.  We arrived at the Replay Lounge and checked in with a few pre-show beverages.

Shortly thereafter, the first band "National Avant Guard" setup and began the show. The band consisted of two guys (drummer and guitarist/singer/bassist) and a laptop. This is a combination we are seeing more of these days. I really envy bands like this because a) they hardly have any gear to load  and b) they split their earnings two ways. Three cheers for laptops!  Although it's not necessarily my cup of tea, they were good and it was cool to see them use loops and switch between guitar and bass mid song.

After they played, Echo in the Elms took the stage and played to an even larger crowd of onlookers. By this time, we were unloading our gear so I unfortunately didn't get to see hardly any of their set.  It looked like everyone was enjoying themselves though...

Last but not least, it was our turn. It was sometime past midnight when we started our set to a decent sized audience most of whom we did not know. The stage is pretty small at The Replay Lounge and the PA is a bit challenging but that is the part of the beauty. As we worked our way through the songs it felt good to just be playing in a small room to a group of people that we didn't know and who were genuinely excited and into the music.  After we were done, we sold a large amount of shirts, cds, etc. which is always a good thing.  I have to say that although this was not a big show by any means, it was really inspiring and eye-opening for us.  It really reaffirmed our desire/need to expand our horizons and promote/play in more towns like Lawrence, Kansas.  And that is exactly what we plan to do from here on out.  We would like to thank everyone who came out to The Replay Lounge as well as the Replay staff. All of you made our night and we hope to do it again soon.



The next night, Ryan and I were scheduled to play a few of our songs acoustic at Sandstone amphitheater (or whatever they call it these days). 96.5 The Buzz was having their Beach Ball event with Smashing Pumpkins, Cake, Anberlin and a bunch of bands there and we were invited to do some songs in the Jeriney's "White Trash" Tent.  This tent was decked out in true Nascar/boogen fashion and let me tell you, it was REEAAAAL NICE.  It was as bare bones as it gets. Just two guys and our guitars. No PA, no microphones, no amps, notta. We were lucky to have lights, alcohol and bathrooms. :-) Long story short, we did 4 songs to a good group of people and surprisingly it turned out to be pretty cool.  It was also nice to play a show and not have to lug any gear around! Thank You to Jeriney for having us and everyone who checked us out.

Overall, it was a good weekend for us. As we were driving home last night I thought about how lucky the four of us are to have the opportunity to play music, be in band with friends and work to move this band forward.  As the saying goes: It's about the ride, not the destination.  And that's a beautiful thing.

- Gene