Golem's "Fresh Off Boat Tour", Aug-Sept 2006
In support of our first album on Jdub Records, which hit stores August 22nd (and which you can order here), Golem hit the road for three weeks of concerts, the first week with DJ Anaan (Jdub..s own Aaron Bisman) and the next two weeks with the Israeli-Balkan moveable dance party (and Jdub label-mate) Balkan Beat Box. We drove almost 7000 miles (in our white 15-passenger van, tricked out with a tape deck and manual locks) and did 18 shows (weddings and private parties on the off days). We met great people and made beautiful music everywhere we went... and brought Golem to the people (those outside New York City). We hit Cleveland, Washington D.C., Philadelphia (twice!), Boston, Pittsburgh, Toronto, Newport KY, Chicago, Asheville NC, Blacksburg VA, Baltimore, Bennington VT, Ithaca, and of course, NYC.
If you..ve ever wondered what it's like to be on the road with us, on the tour we call ..Fresh Off Bus,.. here are a few impressions, courtesy of each of the members of Golem....
Aaron Diskin (vocals, tambourine):Haiku ..1
Hello another city
Please allow me to
Rock out with my klezmer out.
Taylor Bergren-Chrisman (contrabass):I discovered the klezmer-cowbell in Toronto.
The dream-like beauty of Toronto's Harborfront Center greeted us after a midnight arrival in the land of the mighty maple leaf, and an otherwise cloudy weekend cleared up for our afternoon set on Labor Day monday. The nice weather stayed on for the early evening parade which featured several all-stars from the festival including Aaron Alexander, SoCalled Josh Dolgin, David Buchbinder and countless others including myself, Taylor Bergren-Chrisman, klezmer-bassist, who was handed a cowbell since I was not about to walk and play bass at the same time.
While taking in the glorious sunset casting a luminescent glow over downtown Toronto's "needle" structure, I processed with the greats underneath gigantic klezmer-puppets into Queen's Quay West while trying to double the Terkisher beat on my bell and not get any dirty looks from the rest of the percussion section. To my surprise, I blended right in and later caught onto some other klezmer grooves including a 16th note-y pattern with a little syncopation. The parade concluded right beside lake Ontario at the cusp of twilight with drum solo by Mr. Alexander and tight ending from Mr. Buchbinder. What a blast!
Annette Ezekiel (vocals, accordion):The Golem Track SuitWe had been talking about them for months, at almost every rehearsal: we needed matching Golem Track Suits, the de rigueur outfit of any self-respecting F.O.B. (Fresh Off Boat, i.e., new immigrant from Eastern Europe or elsewhere). Before tour, Aaron, Alicia and I finally went down to American Apparel and purchased the goods: six beautiful brown (Golem clay color) matching track suits. Aaron then spent an entire day running around the garment district to find the perfect letters, spelling Golem of course, to be sewn on the back. Some of us spent those difficult first days in the van sewing on the letters ourselves and going nearly blind, and others found F.O.B. tailors to do it for them in a mere 15 minutes... In any case, our suits made our sextet more resplendent than we already were (hard to believe). The suits.. greatest advantage was comfort in the van (daily drives varied from 6 to 15 hours!): we often commented that our F.O. B. pants were so comfy, they should be made illegal. The suits were of course also attention-grabbing. We..d march into a club in our matching threads, and people would stare, and point, and mutter ..it..s the band... Unfortunately, this attention sometimes worked to our disadvantage, like the time we were refused service at a rural Pennsylvania restaurant and received dirty looks... but hey, you..ve got to wear your heart on your sleeve, or in this case, your band name on your back.
Tim Monaghan (drums): I got to eat my favorite meal two nights in a row while on tour. The South may not have much, but they do have Waffle House, maker of the meal of choice. The course is both simple and elegant, some would even dare to say daring. No other meal could hold a candle to this one, THE one, the almighty, straight from Waffle House at whatever hour in the morning you order it. It is the Chicken Bacon Cheese I speak of, and here is what it is, but please don't try to make this yourself because I just know it won't be as good.
Start with the breast, the chicken breast that is, preferably of medium to low quality. Already we have reached the secret ingredient part, that being, simply, the grill itself. Only at Waffle House is there a grill/griddle that is NEVER shut off and spends its entire life slathered, heavily, in thick, creamy, decadent butter - no, not margarine or any other "healthy alternatives" bullshit, I'm talking about real-ass butter, and LOTS of it. The extra-butter is the beginning of every item on the menu at Waffle House, with the exception of maybe oatmeal, and even that's a maybe. The grill, armed with the perfect and consistent temperature to cook anything with lots of butter, never fails. Two pieces of Texas Toast (that's double-thick white bread for y'all Yankeez) are then buttered up and toasted on the grill, and the bacon, oh! the bacon, at least four or five generous pieces.(Editor's note: this recipe is not quite kosher.) Chicken in the middle, bacon on top, add two pieces of cheapo, orange American cheese on the top and bottom, then put it all between the hot buttered Texas Toast. The last and final ingredient is one that you have to add yourself, and my version would NOT be complete without it. How could this meal get any greasier or less healthy? Open up that sandwich and squeeze two full packets of Mayo all over. Bon appétit! Thank you, Waffle House, for making my culinary dreams come true.
Alicia Jo Rabins (violin):AJR's top ten of Fresh Off Boat tour:
10. Vintage green shoes (80's) and orange handbag (60's) from Asheville and Cleveland, respectively.
9. Afterparties with Balkan Beat Box.
8. Vegetarian hot dogs on the street in Toronto.
7. Maple syrup tea from the Duty Free shop at Niagara Falls.
6. Watching Sex and the City on my computer in the van. And then watching it again with commentary.
5. The Ashkenaz parade of musicians and giant puppets through the streets of Toronto.
4. Vodka.
3. Lighting shabbes candles as a band at a restaurant in rural PA and doing kiddush backstage in Baltimore.
2. Two (two) impromptu band visits to the Rabins Homestead on the way to shows. Thanks, Mama and Papa Jo Rabins!
1. Golem track suits.
..
Curtis Hasselbring (trombone):I feel I owe everyone that attended the shows of this last tour an explanation for my occasionally odd behavior. I suspect that many of you approaching the venue where Golem was to play walked by someone who looked much like me, a person you may or may not have seen before (perhaps, having seen press photos, I may have subliminally looked familiar to you), talking nonsense into a cell phone. Dit dit dit bthaaaaa. Dit Dit thbbbbbb. Widdu bo! Widdu bo sneepie!
Perhaps you walked a little faster, fearing the loon might approach you. Perhaps you made a wide swath around that curious figure who, mumbling nonsense, you thought might unintentionally unburden his repast on your shoes. PERHAPS YOU WENT HOME INSTEAD OF ATTENDING THE SHOW. Somehow I doubt it. The fact of the matter is, that illegible dribbling character in the red shirt was I, Curtis (aka Death Bone '76), Golem's trombonist. While leading the life of a musician traversing the broad heartland spreading the miracle of the Golem, I was (and am still!) living a double life as a proud father of a five month old boy whom I would speak to every night (at around 8 or 9 EST) before he went to bed. The scenario was that before he went to sleep every night, my wife would put the speaker phone on so that he could hear me and I would make noises and he would laugh and try to eat the phone. In order to accomplish that feat, I put my life on the line in many of the rough neighborhoods that we played in, fending off muggers and rabid music fans who all wanted a piece of me for whatever reason, but it was all worth it.
Aaron Diskin (vocals, tambourine):Haiku ..2
Goodbye another hotel
The back of the van
Smells faintly like raw sheep cheese.
