Executive Summary of the last month:
South to the border.
Long Beach and Colton shows a raving success.
San Diego shows were dominating.
Tiernans was off the hook.
Hemlock was mindblowing.
The logistics and technology on the trip to San Diego were replete with myriad ssnafu, obviously a direct result of Mercury in retrograde. However, when we shed technology (such as clothing) and entered the warm Pacific, all was well. It was especially well at 4 AM with Tiya, Santa Cruz hottest Irish singer. Dublin Square was packed with SD revelers as well as the costumed riff-raff from ComicCon, taking place just a few blocks from the Pub. Saturday night, we had worked the kinks out of the sound system and gotten a better amount of sleep and we rocked the Dublin Square into submission. Driving back home, Mercury raised his speedy head again and added an extra 3 hours to the drive.
We seem to have figured out the way to rock Tiernans Irish Pub in San Francisco. We love the sound there and have a rhythm that allows us to play four 45 minute sets and rock the whole time. Having said that, we dont have any gigs booked at Tiernans at the moment.
Hemlock. Eric Peterson of Mischief Brew opened for us at Hemlock, although we would have been happy to open for him. A one man powerhouse of folk-inflected, rocking originals, Peterson put on a killer show at The Hemlock tavern on Tuesday night. His numerous fans, clad in punk chains and pirate gear, sang along to his songs, moshed with panache and stuck around to rock out with The Hounds. Were not used to playing one 45 minute set, but we threw all our slaying songs and tunes at the audience in rapid succession and got our own mosh pit going.
Long Beach. The Auld Dubliner in Long Beach is a pub and restaurant like many others youve seen. The staff is super-pro, the food is tasty (Scott said the crème brulée was second to the Slanted Doors,) and the clientele was dressed up and ready to drink (and not ready to leave at 2 AM!) Our old pal, Orion McCabe, played some killer sets on his highland pipes in between our sets and just managed to avoid having his carless ass stranded in Long Beach. We had the good fortune to be staying with our friend Scott Campbell. His work schedule was insane and he still allowed five Hounds to sleep on his living room floor in Hollywood. Ah, Hollywood. Next time well just book a gig thats walking distance from Mr. Campbells and enjoy some of the strip. Viper Club, perhaps?
On Saturday Caitlin took us to meet her cousin Vidal. Do you know those life experiences that you just cant anticipate, but change the way you look at the world forever? Vidal is the owner of 1-800-Autopsy, a private autopsy firm in East LA. When I walked in the door of his kitchen, he greeted me with How do you like your eggs. I love that! After the best huevos rancheros Steve and Mike had ever had, Vidal took us to his autopsy lab. The combination of super serious machinery and accoutrements for the important job of representing and giving a voice to the dead and the black humor plastered over every square foot of the 4000 square foot thanatology specialty services facility created a earnest cynicism that endeared Vidal to us forever. Better still, Vidal was allowing us to crash at the lab and view an autopsy in the morning. Ill get to that
Liams Irish Pub in Colton had us bit concerned when we drove up and found it sitting at the end of a strip mall. Our trepidation was short lived as we entered to find a dark, crowd filled pub and restaurant that was in the same league as The Blackthorn and The Plough. We got set up and ripped three songs in a row, Rocky Road to Dublin, The Carlow Set, and Thousand Flowers. Weve never played a show where we started off with so much singing, but the crowd responded so strongly, we just kept singing the songs. This was a rebel song crew and they loved Rising of the Moon and Nation Once Again, and they forced us to sing an a capella version of Fields of Athenry after we had broken down the sound system. Colton is not between any two points on the earth, so theres not really any reason to go through there, but well be going back to play that place!
So Sunday morning, our Southern California shows behind us, our mission accomplished, we woke in the autopsy lab and went outside to greet the day. We also greeted a doctor and lab tech that were just about to commence a chest-only autopsy on an older man who had died, presumably from the effects of obvious lung cancer. Steve, Renée and I were invited to watch the proceedings and after taking a big gulp of air, we entered the theater. As they prepped the body and sharpened the scalpel, Blüe Oyster Cults Dont Fear the Reaper came on the radio. There were a couple of difficult moments with nefarious liquids and the initial Y-incision, but after that we had a most enjoyable and educational tour of the inside of the human body, in this case showing dramatic signs of cancer throughout all the organs, as well as emphysema, and the cause of death, plaque and hardening of the arteries and coronary heart disease. Anna had suggested I meditate on my mortality as a mode of grounding myself before the show (Caitlin prescribed two Irish Car Bombs) and the autopsy was certainly an aid in my meditation. Vidals mission statement is To protect and give a voice to the dead. He does a great job. Watch for him on the tube as part of an autopsy related reality show.
Now were driving back to the Bay Area, by way of Monterey to fetch my kids, and then were off for a few days as Renée goes to Lark Camp and I go fishing with my Dad and brother. Our next show is The Attic in Santa Cruz on August 9th with Sheena and birds fled from me. After that we have The Plough and Stars after a four month absence and then our big benefit show at Slims with Wilson Gil and the Willful Sinners, T&A, and Dave Dalton The Pastor. Thanks to everyone who has already bought tickets for the show.