We are going to ‘Rock The Nation’ this Saturday in Carnation WA with a bunch of other great bands from around the Pacific Northwest, good times guaranteed!
It starts at noon at the Tolt Commons, we’ll go on around 4PM, but get there early and stick around for a day of awesome music. Free, all ages,
It’s a slow news week, so I figured I’d re-post a fun version of ‘Madman’ I recorded in the forests of the Pacific Northwest:
Enjoy!
SJ
Our Oregon adventure has been wonderful so far, I don’t get a lot of time for camping so I like to perform a couple of shows per year near some nice camping opportunities. I’m glad we were able to squeeze in a few nights this year. We were in The Dalles last night, and we’ll be in Bend tonight at the Velvet Lounge.
I’ll be back in Seattle on Sunday afternoon for a full-band show at the waterfront by the Great Wheel. 2:30PM, free and all ages, stop by if you can.
Best,
SJ
My multi-year Pacific Northwest Tour continues this week, please join me for some fun.
Thursday: duo show with Phil on cello at Whisky West in West Seattle, 7-9PM. Free. Tasty food and drinks.
Friday: band show with The Sting Rayes (you’ll love them!) at Mobster Mike’s, 8-11PM, free.
Saturday: trio show with Mary Ann Miller and Oliver Dye at the Ship Tavern in Portland OR. Free. 8PM.
Sunday: solo show at Black Dog Arts Cafe in Snoqualmie for brunch, 11AM-1. Free.
And of course Wednesday for Happy Hour at Bernard’s from 5-7PM.
See you soon!
Best,
SJ
Days 6 and 7. Why does it have to end?
So much happened in seven days, I’ll never be able to describe the whole tour in a blog. Overall, it was an exciting adventure for all of us.
We are very indebted to the folks that helped us get the heck out of town and offered encouragement from home. Just knowing that they were home keeping track of where we were and how we were doing and cheering us on helped give us tons of confidence. Thank you!
And then to all the folks we met on the road, at shows, at pubs, on the streets, cafés, gas stations, etc., and came out to connect with our music, you’re the reason why we packed that SUV to the point where we were all smashed in and drove too many hours in a day without knowing where we would be sleeping, eating, showering, peeing or pooping. We love playing music for you, plain and simple. We LOVE it.
It was really great to get out of LA for a week and meet and play for folks in NorCal and Oregon. I really like what they have going on in their towns and cities. The vibe they create is laid back, fun, kind, the food and beer is delicious, the scenery is gorgeous with all the trees, mountains, and rivers, and they really value music in their lives. The venues we played were friendly, professional, and committed to getting good music for their patrons. LA venues can learn a lot from the venues up north.
NorCal and Oregon, we’re coming back soon. I promise. We love your beer, we love your little hippie enclaves, we love your food, we love your vibe.
See you soon!
Love,
SJ
Day 5, still alive!!!
Today was another sightseeing day. Gabriel and Emma went to a museum while Luca and I went eating and drinking. That’s not exactly true, but not exactly false either.
My friend Greg who lives in Portland came by and picked up me and Luca and we went to a couple of cool bars. We also tried some food at these carts that Portland has all around town, kind of like how Venice Beach has the food trucks that swarm around on popular nights. But these carts are here all the time. Surprisingly tasty and inexpensive, which is good for poor gypsies like ourselves.
One of the bars we went to had a large outdoor seating area with wooden beer hall style tables. Right where I sat down someone had carved a “Venice 13” skull into the table. It was nice to have a little taste of home defaced coincidentally(?) right in front of me.
Our last show in Portland was interesting. We met one of the other bands and they graciously offered to put us up for the night. Ghost Town Waltz, you guys rock! One of our previous cellists was also in town by coincidence and she came to our show at the Ash Street Saloon. Meghan, it was great to see you! We really have liked everyone we’ve met in Portland so far, really good folks.
We’re off to Eugene for our last show up North on this tour. It’s a place called Sam Bond’s Garage and we’ve heard lots of great things about it so we’re looking forward to another fun show. I love living in Venice Beach, but LA just doesn’t have the great vibe for music that Portland does. Portland, rock on with what you’ve got, we’ll see you again soon!
All the best,
SJ
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Day 4 of the tour. The best yet. We had some time to wander around Portland, meet a lot of folks, get into a little trouble, play a couple of shows, etc.
First off, if you haven’t ever been to Portland, you have to go to Powell’s Books. It’s the biggest bookstore I’ve ever seen, it pretty much takes up a city block. They have everything, including free WiFi for me to update our tour journal right now.
We also found a great toy store which kept us occupied for about an hour with great stuff. Pictures attached.
The highlights of the day were our shows of course though. We had only planned one show at the Goodfoot Pub, which was a full set in-between a really great open mic night. The other players were much better than you’d see at any open mic in Los Angeles. After that show we hung out and met a bunch of cool folks and had some delicious local micro-brew beers and a slice of pizza that almost convinced me to only eat pizza for the rest of my life.
We then hightailed it over to another pub a few miles a way that we heard was having a great jam session that night. It was better than great, it was magical. The pub was called the Pub At The End Of The Universe. The layout of the place was so interesting with odd little rooms that led into each other and each one had really laid back folks just hanging out. Everyone was so friendly and eager to hear about Venice and I was interested to hear about what they all have going on in Portland. it was 1AM on a Monday night, and the place was packed with neighborhood folks just out for a good night. So good.
Oh, and the pub also had a delicious veggie lasagna with garlic bread and more micro-brews. Yes, I had two dinners.
Talk to you tomorrow, I hope the beginning of your Summer has been as fun as ours.
Cheers!
SJ
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