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Saturday, October 20, 2007

10.16.07-10.19.07: Cleveland, Conan, NYC & Sonar

I'm long over due for a blog post, but things have been extremely busy. Where do I begin? So much has happened since Cleveland. First, C-town (as I've heard it referred to, however Ohio has three big C-towns; how do you distinguish Columbus from Cincinnati, from Cleveland, whenever someone says "c-town?") was good. We didn't have a sell out, but it was respectable. And, more importantly, the audience appeared to be having a nice time. If anything should be mentioned of this Mute Math experienced that differed from the rest of the tour, it obviously would be that Paul wiped out on his keytar part in "Plan B." Literally, the Rhodes gave out, and he fell feet over head. Fortunately, he was not hurt. I just kept thinking, please don't be hurt . . . we're have to play Conan tomorrow! I know; it's selfish of me, but hey it's Conan! It's good for all of us.

So, speaking of Conan, this was my favorite experience of all the late night t.v. shows. For one, I think Conan is genuinely funny, and moreover, he is off camera who you see on camera. That is, when he came over and talked to us, he was totally himself and just making normal conversation. We was very complimentary to us. He said, "We get a lot of heroin posers here, but it's great to see a band that not only plays their instruments but are true performers as well." Unfortunately, I didn't bring my camera. I can't believe I forgot it. Anyway, I have a feeling we'll be back. We also got to hang out with the band, Mike (bass), La Bamba, Jimmy Vivino, etc. They were all really cool and chill. I didn't get to meet Anthony Hopkins; although I saw him in person down the hall, and he spoke to my wife. She said he was very handsome in person and very nice.

October 17 was a whirlwind of a day. Wendy and I got up & took the train down to Union Square in order to meet the guys to take a 75 mile trip to Neptune, NJ to do a radio interview/performance at G-Rock. It was way too far, but we had a great time at the station. Around 12, we headed back to the city to try to get to another acoustic performance for an ad company. Then, we rushed back to Irving Plaza to get a soundcheck in, and after checking, I was wiped out. By show time came around, I was wondering where we were going to muster up the energy to do a show. It became very apparent that when we walked out on stage. The energy of the crowd hyped me up so much. This was by far our best NYC show ever. The one image I will never forget was when I was sitting on the drums for "Break" and DK was in front of me standing on top of a bass drum being held by the crowd, and clapping his hands with everyone in the building. These New Yorkers were hype. Everyone was singing super loud and pumping me up all night. I loved this show. The icy on the cake was being able to hang out with one of my best friends from childhood, my first band mate, Raul Castillo. You probably don't know him now, but one day you will see him in a major movie or t.v. show. He's a talented actor with lots of heart and passion. He was stoked by the energy of the crowd, and said he's never seen a NYC crowd like ours.

Then, the motion and waves of NYC carried onto Baltimore last night as we took the stage. I can remember the first time we played here in the small room. Not much had changed concerning the excitement and movement of the audience. They were wonderful and fun to jam with. If anything should be mentioned of this show, I will have to say that I thought it was very funny that I unplugged myself right at the beginning of "Obsolete." I'm not sure if everyone saw, but I held up my cord to show what had just happened. I decided to wait a bit and come in with a lick instead of frantically trying to make up for lost notes. It all worked out and was a good thing.




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12 comments:

Bertman316 said...

La Bamba!
Great guy!
The Conan performance was amazing. I think we made eye contact when you guys were waving to the crowd.
Great - Bert

Anonymous said...

I didn't stay up for Conan. I usually have in the past when you've played on a late show, but I had to be up early and just couldn't do it. I saw it on MySpace the next day.

Good job, I could tell Conan was impressed. I like that you impress people, especially those in the industry. It's not just that they like your music, but you actually impress them. Should I say impress one more time, or go find a thesaurus? ;)

Give Darren props for his Paper Darren video, would you? That was awesome... Almost like a music video... HMMMM... Heh. ;)

Glad you got to be with your wife! I hope it gets to happen a lot on tour.

Btw, ironically, I haven't voted on the next single. Since you made the mini poll I've been plagued with voter's block. :S ... Both GREAT songs, I just can't predict which is a better 2nd release for the career of the band... What America will tune in to and what the radio stations, etc. will play more and I've frozen.

Possibly it is "Noticed," but "Control" is such a great song... I don't know if it would make a good number 3 and it seems sad not to introduce it, too. I don't know. Think I might just bow out of the voting process on this one. It's your (collective) baby, after all. {shrug}

Seems so odd that I'll be seeing you live again in just a week or two. How peculiar. If, by chance, I do get to meet you, keep in mind I stink at small talk. Feel free not to judge. :D

-Jen

Melanie said...

I absolutely love the pic.

I saw Conan O'Brien quite a long time ago. I'm thinking about 8 or 9 years ago.. wow...he's been on that long!! I'm sure it was before I moved to UT, though. He can be funny, but sometimes a tad vulgar for my taste. What really impressed me is that he really can do a good straight interview if that is what he is trying to do. I saw him interview Geoffrey Rush and Wilt Chamberlain. He did a good straight interview with Mr. Rush. He did took a more humorous route with Mr. Chamberlain. Both were good.

Anyway, I think I said elsewhere that your performance on Conan had me so hyped my adrenaline was really going. Good thing my husband was sound asleep, because I must have applauded and squealed more than once. :) It was sooo good. I did eventually fall asleep. My only regret is not saving it to dvr to watch again, so I'm stuck with youtube and myspace. LOL

And I think Conan was genuinely impressed with you guys. He went right over to you, too.

I have to agree with Jen on how you impress people. You know I go to a lot of shows, and Mute Math is most definitely an artist favorite. It's obvious that you totally leave your mark on the late shows where you've performed as well.

I'm so glad Wendy could be there. I thought you had said she would be in NYC. I just figured you would rather spend time with her than blog. ;) I certainly wouldn't blame you.

But I'm really glad that you took the time to share.

And wow, I think your hair grows faster than mine. And mine grows really fast. I can't believe how long it is now!!

O.K. I should be stop and go to the store now.. dogs are out of food and chewies and Daisy gets rather insistant about her chewies. LOL

--Melanie

paulmike3 said...

Hey Roy! The C-town show was awesome, as usual! To answer your question, we, here in Cleveland, call it C-town kind of as a rivalry with the other "C" cities in Ohio. A lot of talk shows and other personalities also call us that (Jim Rome for instance). It's more or less a moniker. Anyway, thanks for the C-town reference! :)

As far as Conan, I didn't think you could top Kimmel, but you certainly took it to the next level! I DVR'd it, and have shown it to everyone that has come over since Wednesday!

Lastly, I want to thank you (and the rest of the fellas) for the energy you exert for your shows -- it's truly a thrill watching you guys give it your all, night in and night out. You all play with a passion, and it's obvious you love what you're doing! Thanks Roy!!

- paul

Anonymous said...

Thank you for saying that, Melanie. It's good to know I'm not the only one who claps at the television set.

I was up fairly late last night on here, checking out new music (A Fine Frenzy is one of the latest finds), and I finally had to go clean the kitchen from dinner... However, I needed some music to do it by... So I got the inspired idea to open that DVD I bought at your Boston show and have that playing while I cleaned...

Well, I did clean, eventually, but not until after the DVD had finished. I clapped and grinned like a school girl after every song... And I called myself a dork because of it (like you could hear me), but I didn't care. So... If you heard a far off pitter-pat sound last night, that was me -- giddy with delight.

Some guy near me had said it was an awesome DVD when I bought it, but I didn't know it was that awesome. I especially liked the tidbits at the end -- the asides. Like a nice chocolate mousse after a delicious, hearty meal. It just tops it off with something special.

Annnd... I finally figured out who was married and who wasn't married. Well, unless Darren is now married, too... Paul was the only tricky one since he doesn't wear a ring. Why do guys do that? I'm proud of you for wearing a ring, Roy. (Kudos to Greg, too.)

(As in props, not the snack food... Unless he's hungry in which case we could probably track down some Kudos for him...)

Wow. Long comments. I prefer to think of them as public letters though.

:)
-Jen, take deux

Melanie said...

Sometimes rings interfere with playing. Paul's wife is often at the shows. :) She's a sweetheart. Darren is single, unless that's changed in the last couple of weeks. LOL

Martyne said...

This week has been phenomenal for Mute Math.

Conan was WONDERFUL and I was so pleasantly surprised on your song choice :) You guys did a fantastic job.

The Irving Plaza show was...wow. It was an interesting one for Bert and I, since much "chaos" went on with the politics on the venue and guest list. Even though we experienced the concert in ways we didn't want, you all performed the best I've seen yet. I felt so proud of you....going from that wonderful night in the Kniting Factory to a sold out crowd such as this.

Congrats :)

Unknown said...

I missed watching Conan that night but I saw it on youtube the next day! (youtube is a lifesaver sometimes) Interesting choice with Break The Same. It was a phenomenal performance (as always :D).

I saw this great band on Thursday night at Irving Plaza...Mute Math...have you heard of them? lol.
Wow, so much energy, such great music, everything was perfect! You were even better than when I saw U2 two years ago (but don't tell Bono that okay? :) ). And here I was thinking there was nothing better than listening to a Mute Math cd, but apparently, your live shows rock, as I expected of course, but you seriously exceeded expectations, and I was expecting the greatest concert of life!
Unfortunately I could't get any of my friends to come with me, so my dad did, and wasn't a huge fan (oh well, maybe that means next time he'll let me go see you guys on my own!) I would have really liked to get there very early and then stay around after, but my dad wanted to leave and wouldn't get there before 8 :( .
Regardless, even about halfway back in the audience (or perhaps closer) it was an unforgettable expeerience. Next time you're in New York, I would love to meet the 4 of you, but for now, I'll just be happy enough post this comment (considering that's the reason why I just joined this site!!! haha

Your blog rocks Roy!!!!!!

kingofbother said...

This show was the best I've seen so far. And I've seen a lot. Jen and I were so happy to meet and talk to Wendy. I can't wait until the next show. My buddy Fish was so mad that he could'nt be there. I'm working on getting you guys back to Rochester. Take care.

Matt

Laura Ann said...

hey roy! amazing job at sonar- that was, i think, my 5th MM show and prob my favorite. you guys just get more amazing each time.

anyway, somehow i found myself in the very front and got some decent pics. so, just thought i would share :)

http://picasaweb.google.com/harris.laur/EisleyMuteMath

keep up the good work! :)

blessings-
laura

Laedelas Greenleaf said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Laedelas Greenleaf said...

I will verify that the C-town audience was having a "nice time." About 1/4 of that crowd were friends or acquaintances, and they had a blast! I certainly did. I was the one screaming just under 1,000 Hz at 130 Db...is that a bad thing?

Thank you so much for putting a genuine effort into your music. Since it was a Tuesday, I couldn't hang around until very late...but if you ever come to Pittsburgh again (or maybe Cleveland), I'll be sure to shake your hand!

The upright bass was amazing. You're one of the few bass players that I respect, and your knowledge of an unfretted stringed instrument like that helps incredibly.


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