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Friday, November 03, 2006

11.19.06: Culture Room-Ft. Lauderdale, FL

The mother of all shows, that is, not only the last, but with one of the best crowds in the world: South Florida. The finale was probably one of the funniest times I've had on stage (watch the video and you'll see what I mean). We had silly string, half-naked indians, end-of-tour angst, breaking stuff and more breaking stuff. I miss the guys from Jonezetta and The Whigs, and I wish them the best.

11.17.06: State Theatre-Tampa, FL

Exceptional show and quite a surprise. I can't wait to go back for the Fray tour.

11.15.06: The Social-Orlando, FL

The Social is always a special place because it sounds so great in there; well, at least most of the time, but this time, I had major sound issues, which made for a not-so-enjoyable performance.

11.14.06: Martini's-Jacksonville, FL

Not much to say except that we are getting closer to Miami.

11.13.06: off day-Nashville, TN

What can I say? I'm home!

11.12.06: City Hall-Nashville, TN

Our best Nashville show yet. Club of the Sons were exceptional. Plus, I get to sleep in my own bed after the show!

11.11.06: Grimey's-Nashville, TN

This was a special performance since it was the first time (without any rehearsals) that I played my upright for a Mute Math show. I played it on "Chaos" and "Noticed." By the time we got to "Reset," I was worn out. Not playing upright consistently for over three months will show you what a wimp you are. That thing had me for lunch, but at least I was warmed up for the next day when I used it for "Obsolete" at City Hall. That was memorable. I hope one day to tour with the double bass, ¡mi contrabajo míjo! I bought Ron Carter's Green and Yellow on vinyl, too.

11.10.06: The Basement-Columbus, OH

The Decemberists played next door in the big room. I'm not too fond of this venue because it's too small and only about a quarter of the audience can really see the stage. I'd hate to see a show here.

118.06: El Mocambo-Toronto, Ontario

Did the whole MTV thing in Canada, which was quite fun. The show was decent. It was a long day, and I was happy for it to be all over. By the way, I have no idea what a "mocambo" is except that I think it's a place and has to do with Brazil.

11.7.06: Mile End Cultural Center-Montreal, Quebec

While in Montreal, I kept wishing I knew more French, and since this visit, I have started studying. (My father speaks French, and it's part of my hertitage.) I ate at a Chileno/Mexicano place and spoke Spanish instead. At the show, the crowd was so insane, by far the craziest of the entire tour, for reals, no lies, ¡te lo juro! I thought the floor (we were on the 2nd floor) was going to cave in.

11.6.06: Webster Underground-Hartford, CT

Since I dropped the ball, the blogging ball that is, near the end of the fall tour, I decided to write a quick recap of the remainder of the dates. Must I remind the reader that it has been over a month since the tour ended. Most of these will be no longer than a paragraph.

Webster Underground was a crappy little club in the ghetto (it seemed like the Puerto Rican ghetto at that, which of course I have a special place in my heart for) of Hartford. Anyway, we had played here once before with Switchfoot (but in the big room, which was nice.) As usual, the crowd made up for lack of bad sound and lights.

11.4.06: off day-NYC

New York on a day off . . . not to mention, a day off in the city with my wife! What else could I ask for? We had a wonderful, romantic time.

I'm going to live here one day . . .

10.31.06:20th Century Theater-Cincinnati, OH

The Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos, Día de los Difuntos or Día de Muertos in Spanish) is an ancient Aztec celebration in memory of deceased ancestors, celebrated on November 1 (All Saints' Day) and November 2 (All Souls' Day).

The holiday is especially popular in Mexico, where it is a national holiday, and is celebrated in the Philippines, in Mexican-American communities in the United States, and to a lesser extent in other Latin American countries. It is a public holiday in Brazil, where many Brazilians celebrate it by visiting cemeteries and churches, bringing flowers, lighting candles and praying.

Though the subject matter may be considered morbid from the perspective of some other cultures, Mexicans celebrate the Day of the Dead joyfully, and though it occurs at the same time as Halloween, All Saints' Day and All Souls Day, the traditional mood is much brighter with emphasis on celebrating and honoring the lives of the deceased, and celebrating the continuation of life; the belief is not that death is the end, but rather the beginning of a new stage in life.

11.1.06-BB King's: New York, NY

It was my first time to play in Times Square, and it felt surreal to see our name up on the marquee, down in the middle of it all.

Down in the bowels of the city, Darren and I catch the subway.

Vintage cab used on MM debut (two 15" Jensen speakers).