Hi, I'm sitting in the Velvet Jones in Santa Barbara right now on Satomi's computer. I think I might look funny. My ipod is playing nice and loud through the PA system - the first band OSO hasn't started yet. The bartender is yelling to his co-worker "What's up with the music?" and he doesn't sound that happy about it...

Today our rental van got a flat tire, but we pulled into San Luis Obispo and found a tire place and they patched it for free!

Tomorrow in LA (Echoplex) we have the great honor of being joined onstage with trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith. He will play part of the set with us.

I first heard of him reading that incredible book about Anthony Braxton called Forces In Motion. I was a fan of the few examples of his recorded work I could find. But then suddenly about 8 years ago there was a special concert happening at a church near our apartment in SF. It was Satomi's favorite poet, Kazuko Shiraishi, reading from her new collection, and Wadada playing along on trumpet. Wow, this was an incredible show. It was in a pretty tiny room, and we were just a few feet away from what was happening, which was unamplified and extremely sparse. I don't know that I've ever heard so few notes contain so much intensity and emotion as what I heard Wadada do that day. Speaking became music and music became speaking. That borderline has always fascinated me so this concert meant the world to me.

After the show we nervously went to thank him for the show and he was very kind. He even gave us his then-new CD Reflectativity. Ever since then we cursed the fact that we didn't have any Deerhoof on us, but harbored a fantasy of playing together someday.

Well that day has finally arrived, and we are so excited! I've been emailing back and forth with him for a few weeks. Turns out he had heard Deerhoof anyway, I think through Nels Cline. He was into playing together so tomorrow (Friday) it's going to happen.

If you're in the LA area please come down to the Echoplex! if not, take a look at his website http://music.calarts.edu/~wls/

Also we have Busdriver on the bill, and I am so looking forward to seeing some of these new songs (Jhelli Beam songs) on stage. We just listened to the album in the car on the way down the 101, and it is truly a masterpiece in my opinion, his best yet.

Greg