North American Tour June 2008
By STEFAN ROGENMOSER
The Explorers Club
The Tour Begins
Drove to Glen Burnie, Md. and stayed with a friend. On the way to Hoboken I drove us through Princeton, N.J. and we went by the university, which has a beautiful campus and is where I probably should have gone to college. We had our GPS set to avoid toll roads. We drove on some beautiful country roads looking at rolling hills.
The next day we drove to Hoboken, N.J., which is just one Hudson River away from New York City.
We played at a place called Maxwell’s. They fed us. It was a good show, and loud
We got to meet Lightspeed Champion, and we liked their music and their British accents…I forgot their exact vernacular and word choice, but it was enjoyable and made us Americans laugh. After the show Jim, Chris, Neil, and I went to the waterfront and overlooked the Hudson River to see the NYC skyline. It was windy and chilly, but nice.
We stayed with Jim and Rebecca in Jersey City, about 10 minutes away. In New Jersey you’re not allowed to pump your own gasoline. Jim manages our friend’s band the Swims. They had tons of cool stuff in their flat, like a painting by Hunter S. Thompson which he’s shot with a shotgun, and a Kurt Vonnegut original sketch.
Village Voice interview
Next day, drove through Manhattan to Brooklyn because we were staying there with one of Dave’s friends for the next two nights. We parked the van close to where his pad was, then we walked to the subway and rode to Queens for an interview.
Socrates Sculpture Park is where we did some video performances for the Village Voice, the nation’s first independent paper. While we waited for our rendezvous, Jim, Dave, Chris, and I went to eat some lunch at a very humble and incredibly good Greek restaurant called Mr. Gyro. Our waitress was very good, and she complimented our hair.
The journalists (one was a writer, the other a video-journalist) from the Village Voice were two freelances, they totally rule. We performed our songs “Don’t Forget the Sun,” “If You Go,” and “I Lost My Head.” Of course Jason got to do the interview.
We walked back to the subway, which here was above ground, and it looked like a scene straight out of The French Connection where Gene Hackman drives/chases through the streets under the subway rails overhead.
We took the subway to the Village, went to Washington Park, which was under construction. We still found a bench in the open part of the park to busk on. We even played a version of “I Only Have Eyes for You,” originally by the Flamingos.
That night Lightspeed performed on Conan, and they draped our t-shirt draped over one of their amps.
Some of the guys had expensive fancy pizza downtown, Jim and I had street hot dogs instead. We went to this weird artsy “space party” with Dave’s friend, whom we were staying with in Brooklyn. Our friend Chelsea met us. Some of us went to the Virgin Megastore in Times Square, and we found our CD there. I found Dusty in Memphis, Stop the Clocks, for reasonable prices. Then some of us went to the Planet Hollywood bar. And then the late night subway, which stops at every stop. Took a little while to get to the pad in Brooklyn.
In-Store Show
In-store at Vintage Vinyl in New Jersey early that afternoon. Played pretty well. After we signed some records and CDs we sold, we looked around the store at some records and CDs. A lot of famous musicians have played here. Eli “Paperboy” Reed played after us and his performance was incredible. He sounded like good 1960s soul such as Otis Redding, Sam Cooke, Motown, and James Brown. His backing band included a horn section.
A Night in Manhattan
We drove the Hulk back into Manhattan to the Bowery Ballroom. We unloaded and were able to park right in front of the venue. Jim and I walked a few blocks to the Mercury Lounge, where we’d played a little over a month ago, and where I’d somehow left my keyboard throne. Of course it was nowhere to be found. Back to the Bowery Ballroom, an incredible venue with great sound on stage and in-house. Our show went well and the New Yorkers seemed to dig us. Chelsea also made it the show. Chelsea and I went out for a smoke then went downstairs to the bar. We were down there for a bit, occasionally stepping outside again. Chelsea and I ended up watching Lightspeed Champion from the balcony, then to our Explorers Club room on the balcony. The room was empty. Chelsea and I were ready for another cigarette. She suggested we smoke it in the room. I closed the curtain, lit it, and we smoked it, of course concealing it from the balcony bartender, who could have easily seen us since there’s a window between the bar and our room. We were smoking inside a non-smoking club, and nobody stopped us or possibly even knew. I put the butt in an empty cup with melting ice and condensation. Back to the balcony to watch Lightspeed Champion rule it. Back downstairs to refuel. I think the show was over by this point, or at least nearing the end. I went outside to smoke, and Neil and Jim were out there too. Neil noticed my condition and advised me to drink lots of water. I did. It didn’t help… empty stomach. I shoved a cigarette into the filter tip cigarette holder and lit it. That was it. I walked closer to the building and performed The Big Spit… it was really only water though, since I hadn’t eaten yet. Then again. And again. At least I didn’t have to load up any gear. Chelsea treated us to pizza, but I even ruined my chances at that. I ate the crust though, and it was great. We took the van back to Brooklyn and stayed there one more night.
Telectroscope
The next morning we woke up to a hot apartment, but it wasn’t so bad. We packed up and drove over to a Telectroscope right near the Brooklyn Bridge on the Brooklyn side. We could see London on the other end of the Telectroscope with the London Bridge in the background. One woman was speaking on the phone with her mother in London in real time.
After examining the Telectroscope and a beautiful garden near the foot of the Brooklyn Bridge, we trucked on to Boston. We shoed up quite early, then hung out with Lightspeed outside the venue… Jim taught Dev from Lightspeed a few tricks on the skateboard. Mike, Jim, and I perused the streets a little and stumbled upon a building covered with shrubs, then found some Boston University students painting a mural of hot air balloons.
There weren’t a ton of people at the show, probably because there was a big Celtics basketball game happening that night. Lightspeed had an encore and Dev stood on his skateboard on stage while playing guitar. One of the writers from the SMiLE shop was there to see us, as were some people from a local college radio station which gave us airplay. Flowers Forever was in Kansas that night. The college radio people left after we played. The venue was Great Scott, actually in Aliston, Mass. On the way out we drove by Harvard University but it was dark and we didn’t see much. We also drove through downtown Boston, which is a big city, but seemed comparatively small after being in and around New York City for a few days.
The Sun Also Rises Early
We drove through the night into Vermont. Dawn happens around 3:30 a.m. this far north, and the sun came up not long after. We stayed in a hotel in Burlington, Vt. We had the next day off. We ate at a 1950s style hamburger and ice cream place called Al’s Frys, which was good. Most of us then went to sit on a grassy knoll and gaze over Lake Champlaign. Upstate New York was on the other side of the lake. As we were leaving the waterfront a train slowly crept by, and Dave jumped onto one of the cars and rode for a few seconds. At the hotel we did laundry until after 3 a.m. because the dryer wasn’t very efficient. There was also a hot tub and pool we spent a fair amount of time in.
Montreal
The next day we drove into Canada and then arrived in Montreal. We brought a road atlas and did some state trivia while driving. Montreal felt like Europe. French is the preferred language here. There are smutty adult stores everywhere. Everyone speaks English too. Everyone here is healthy, or at least they look fit, after all, they live in a country where there’s free health insurance. There were anywhere from 4-10 people watching us at Les Saints, the venue. Nice venue. We videotaped our show on my camcorder. We hung out in the green room with Lightspeed Champion and got to know each other a little better.
The Cleanliness of Toronto
We drove through the night toward Toronto. The Canadian countryside is beautiful. The sun also has arisen, and is pretty bright around 4 a.m. Toronto is high in the running for the cleanest city I’ve ever seen. The people here are fit too, and English is the primary language, eh! We didn’t have time to go to the CN Tower, but the venue—Lee’s Palace—was cool. The production manager and soundman are two of the coolest people we’ve ever worked with at a venue. We videotaped this show too, which was better attended. Jim did a hilarious back flip off the high stage but didn’t land it right and fell down with his arms in the air. The ramp to get on stage was steep, and sliding down in my boots my boots my boots with heavy gear in hand was easy. Going up though, Dave had to give me a push. Afterward, we talked to some interesting Toronto dwellers, smoking much valued (and very expensive) Gauloises. They’re worth it, it’s the perfect cigarette, and could easily make anyone start smoking and never stop. Neil and Mike and I ate some Middle Eastern food (falafel, I think) that was good and filling. Jim and I went to a bookstore, and even though they had some cool stuff, we didn’t feel like purchasing anything. I love Toronto. I could easily have stayed here. At the hotel we watched our show from my camcorder and took notes. I just hit record and set the camera on the soundboard. At soundcheck I played the intro to “These Eyes” by the Guess Who and the soundman said, “Welcome to Canada,” then I played “Summer in the City” by the Lovin’ Spoonful, and the soundman said, “Welcome to California.”
Back in the USA
From Toronto I took us through more Canadian countryside and back into the USA. We bypassed Detroit and got into some real heavy rain in Michigan or Illinois. We listened to a books on tape of Kurt Vonnegut’s last novel, Timequake, quite a funny listen. We crossed the Mississippi River and were in Rock Island, Iowa. The next morning we played/recorded at a blog/online radio session called Day Trotter. It was awesome. I got to rock a Farfisa organ, an awesome Lowrey organ, and a Wurlitzer electric piano probably from the late 1950s. It sounded awesome coming out of a Sears Silvertone amp. There was also a tack piano there. The sessions were all recorded onto 2-track tape.
Then we drove to Chicago and did the same thing, but more acoustic versions. This place was called Hear Ya and was recorded on Pro Tools. The guitars were acoustic this time. I played a sweet sounding Hammond organ and Mike rocked a Wurlitzer electric piano probably from the 60s or 70s. We drove a few blocks over to North Western Chicago to play the Empty Bottle. The show went well and we even got an encore for the first time this tour, but we didn’t play another song. Jim and I had a long conversation outside with two Chicago natives, grade school teachers.
We stayed with one of Mike’s friends whom he once was in a Beatles cover band with. They were called The Return. Young was, and still is, John Lennon. Now Young plays in a Beatles cover band called American English. Young played guitar for us. It was incredible, he was as good, or possibly better, than John Lennon. And it takes a lot to say that. He played “I’m Only Sleeping,” “HELP!” “Day Tripper” and even “Woman is the Nigger of the World.” (yes, that’s a John Lennon song). Everything was spot on. Then Young got on the piano and played “Jealous Guy” perfectly. He had a nice and gorgeous girlfriend named Enisa. Young is an incredibly nice guy, and has the closest personality to John Lennon than anyone I’ve ever met. Some of us hung out by a camp fire in the back yard before the J-45 jamming began inside. We didn’t sleep very long.
Madness in Minneapolis
The next day we drove through Wisconsin. We had to navigate some alternate routes because some interstates we closed due to flooding. It was nice countryside. We drove past a tourist town called Wisconsin Dells that seemed a lot like Myrtle Beach. Was all wanted to stop, but we had to trudge on to Minneapolis, which is a crazy city. We played at the 7th Street Entry, where Prince filmed Purple Rain. This very nice man who knew the Beach Boys personally, and he gave Neil his Dennis Wilson t-shirt. We rocked really hard that night and then some of us did an interview for the local independent paper in the downstairs green room. After the show we had pizza and walked by some “Back dat ass up” type clubs. Party City. Stretch limousines everywhere. Well dressed people. Plenty of money. Dr. Hunter S. Thompson once wrote “There was madness in any direction, at any hour.” Now I know what he was talking about. I don’t know if anyone was sober. Jim took a picture of me rocking on the big Hard Rock Café guitar across the street from the venue. I got to talk with Anna (Lightspeed’s drummer) about British football, Monty Python, and some other things.
Fargo
We drove to Fargo, North Dakota that night. We had the day off. The next night we watched the Coen Brothers film Fargo in Fargo. Earlier that night Mike and I cleaned out the van. We drove one through N. Dakota, where the interstate was often straight as far as I could see , until the mirage of I-94 melted into the horizon. We stopped in Bismark to get an oil change. We had to stop in Hebron, N.D. to get gas. It seemed like Hebron never made it beyond 1985, but it had a nice quaint small town feel. Lot of mills. And friendly people.
Badlands
Towards the western part of the state we stopped at Roosevelt National Park, near Fryburg, N.D. We took several pictures of the canyons and even some buffalos were roaming about. And on we drove, into Montana. Dave was driving now. It was dark. I was in the back of the van. BANG! Krunkle krunkle krunkle! I knew we’d hit something, or been in some kind of a wreck. Several words that are unfit to recreate here. We’d hit a deer. It was a familiar sound… I lost my first car to a deer. We pulled off to the side but had no reception in the middle of nowhere, Montana. None of us were hurt. Just a little post-traumatic shock, still spewing out words unfit to print. Montana is the least populated state. There are probably more cows than people in this state. We were at the bottom of the exit ramp, so we cranked what was left of the van, smelling like coolant, and nursed her back to the Eastbound ramp, hitting a bird on the way up. We had to climb a hill to get cell phone reception. It was full moon, the stars were out, it was a dark night. We called AAA, who sent highway patrol o help us. Rosebud County showed up and was very helpful. They called a wrecker and a tow truck. The wrecker took the van, the tow truck took the trailer. Most of the guys rode in the wrecker. Dave, Jason, and I rode in the police car 12 miles East to the nearest town, Forsyth. We stayed in a hotel there. The van was taken to the repair shop. We feared the tour might be over, but we all kept our cool.
In the morning the mechanic used two cell phones at once until he found us a radiator in Billings, Montana, the nearest city. We had to wait on its arrival. We had to check out of the hotel, so we sat around outside and worked on cover songs and I got to catch up with my blogging. Just after 3 p.m. we heard lots of honking and a “Wu-whoooooo!” as Dave pulled the fixed van into the hotel parking lot. We were filled with joy and thanked Jesus and the people of this tiny town of Forsyth (population 2,000) for all the help.
The insurance on the van and Dave’s insurance paid for all the towing and repairs. As we passed Exit 82 Westbound Dave pulled over to look at the deer carcass. Nearby was another decomposing deer carcass. The police officer told us there had been another deer strike that night, and someone’s car was totaled. That kind of stuff is not news to Montana law officers. That deer cost us our air conditioning and some delays. The mechanic told Dave that the bird we’d hit after hitting the deer is called a Kill Deer, and they are rare birds. Fate? Conincidence? Or just pure weirdness, chance. Making the Seattle gig was obviously impossible, so we bolted through the rest of Montana on towards Portland.
The Next Gig… Portland
We finally got through the long sate of Montana. Then briefly Idaho, then Washington, which looked like a tundra until we got to the Columbia River, which Lewis & Clark traveled down. At a gas station we saw a bum couple who got to hitch a ride with a trucker. We stopped in Oregon to look at Multnomah Falls, a beautiful waterfall. Dave, Jim, Mike and I braved the long trail to the top of the waterfall. It went uphill at least ten times. We were completely exhausted once we reached the top, but it was a nice view, and long way down. We were way the hell up there. That climb would cost me later… all energy should be spared on such a sleep/nutrition deprived tour. The water flowed over some rocks right off the edge and straight down for at least a few hundred feet. Dave, Jim, and I gulped some mountain stream water up there at the top. Mike feared there were amoebas in the water.
We arrived at Doug Fir Lounge in Portland. Chris and I walked around Portland to some record stores and picked up some cool tunes, and also found our album. We probably walked 40 blocks or more. My lack of sleep and those long walks were catching up with me. Doug Fir is one of the best venues around. They fed us a fancy meal with Gruyere cheese. They let us smoke in the green room. Jim and Dev from Lightspeed went to Burnside Skate Park to skate. Some of us stopped by a pretty hip vintage store.
We thought our show that night was pretty sloppy. I was in the green room when I heard the drums of our first song begin. We were videotaping this show too. All of Lightspeed Champion and Flowers Forever and all their crew looked on. They made up most of the crowd. Upon reviewing our video of the show we realized it wasn’t as bad as we thought. It was the first show we’d played since we hit the deer. I came close to falling asleep or collapsing on stage.
After the show I was strung out on a sofa in the green room. Anna and Dev from Lightspeed took pictures of me in this state. I wore a tight red suit, a 70s shirt with butterfly collars, my fedora, and enormous yellow sunglasses. I think a lit cigarette was hanging out of my mouth and I was sipping on a cold brew. It was good laugh. I got my second wind ten minutes after we’d gotten off stage. I took some pictures of Lightspeed during their set. Cameras don’t like low light environments, but a few of my snaps were in focus.
Martin from Lightspeed got a tattoo that afternoon in Portland, it was a harmonica with flames shooting out of it. He was also wearing a Pantera t-shirt, pretty funny. We all hung out in the green room after the show. I did an impression of a heroine junkie, or what I thought that would look like, for about ten minutes. Jason thought it was pretty funny. All of us Explorers were in the green room singing and playing Beatles songs as Lightspeed’s set ended. They went back out for an encore and Anna played some bass as Dev played drums and I don’t know what anyone else played. As they were breaking down their instruments from stage I walked through the room singing “If you’re going to San Francisco… be sure to wear some flowers in your hear… you know you want to” I ad-libbed to someone who was listening, Anna from Lightpseed, who was laughing.
Apparently some of the Lightspeeders had partied pretty hard in Portland. Maybe because the oldies tribute band wasn’t there. While loading out of the Doug Fir Lounge we slid down the parking garage exit with the dolly containing our gear. The parking garage gate door was funny… someone had to walk out in order for it to open.
I slept in the back of the van. I was told the drive to the hotel was pretty rough, down some windy road along the Pacific Coast Highway. We stopped in Newport, Oregon.
The Mighty Pacific
As we left Newport we saw the Pacific Ocean. The view was incredible. We stopped at some state parks to film us performing some songs. A nice girl filmed us doing “Don’t Forget the Sun.” The drive was beautiful. We took lots of pictures. There are a lot of small quaint towns along the PCH, and they’re pretty cool. They all have little walk up coffee shops, like “Sugar Shack” by Jimmy Glimmer.
California! We were at our true home, at last. The PCH in California is even more beautiful and cooler than Oregon. We drove past some enormous redwood trees. It was incredible. We played a song in front of an enormous redwood. We saw an elk. Then it was back to the 101. We ate at a Denny’s somewhere in Northern California. Then we got on Hwy. 1. A crazy idea of Dave’s. The road was twisting and turning and going up and down and it was like a roller coaster. It was fun and scary at the same time, like a nightmare. It was so dark. We finally made it back to the PCH’s cliffy coast and almost immediately had a flat tire on our trailer. Dave, Mike, and I did the honors of changing the tire. I don’t know if anyone else in the band noticed we had a flat. They probably thought we were stopping for the fun of it. It was pretty late. We still had one spare left.
We rolled on into a town called Fort Bragg, Calif. The next day as we were leaving I don’t think I closed the back trailer door properly. It flew open, and two suitcases were on the highway. A nice man put them on the side of the road. We were stopped at a gas station, and I got the suitcases (which weren’t even mine) and put them back in the trailer and closed it properly this time.
We drove through some hilly vineyards and countryside. The roads had no shoulder. It was hot. It was a little frightening. We got back to the 101, and it was hot there too.
If You’re Going to San Francisco be sure to climb the streets…
We stopped at the hill on the Sausalito side of the Golden Gate Bridge. We took lots of pictures. The Golden Gate, Alcatraz, the Bay, the Bay Bridge, the San Fran skyline, the Pacific off to the West… it was all too much.
We rolled into San Francisco singing songs about it by bands from there and then tried to make it up some of the steep hills. Our van and trailer barely made it up the steep San Francisco streets, going about 10-15 mph floored. The engine was really loud. But we made it. Back to the Independent, a venue where we’d played last year with Apples in Stereo. That was also a Friday night, as was this night. We did some rehearsing out back before the gig. We also had incredibly good chips and salsa in our green room. It was gone in an instant. I forgot the brand name of that stuff, or else I’d be munching on it right now. Neil and I cooked up some coffee. I put my camcorder on the upstairs soundboard.
This was easily the best show of the tour so far. We did a cool intro walking on stage, we tightened up the gaps between songs, and this time I got to be up front between Jim and Jason. It was so much fun, just like last year. The audience was into us. We rocked hard, and at the end of our last song I threw my piano onto the stage, half of it still on the keyboard stand, and started whaling on it with my hands and feet. I think we were a hard act to follow that night.
Mike and I watched Lightpseed for a little bit then went to go find some food. Pizza was what we found. Everything else was closed. We didn’t make to see Haight-Ashbury again this year. Lightspeed had a fun set too. After the show Dave, Mike and I were sitting on stage playing guitar and singing and trying to impress whatever ladies were around. I don’t think it worked. San Francisco is a very romantic city, it is majestic and beautiful. It’s like a much cooler and bigger Charleston, both being peninsula cities, except that the Civil War never seems to have left Charleston, and San Francisco is probably rebuilt after every earthquake.
We hit the road to Los Angeles that night. It’s a beautiful drive between San Francisco and Los Angeles. It seems like Seinbeck country. We drove the other way last year, which is when we stopped at a gas station, used the restrooms, bough fresh blood oranges from a tent vendor, and got back on the interstate realizing nobody had pumped any gas. That was laugh.
Welcome to Paradise
We pulled into L.A. and went straight to the Little Radio warehouse, which is where we’d play that afternoon. I tried to get some sleep, but it didn’t really work out. There was an above-ground pool outside and a giant inflatable waterslide. They gave us some good lunch. Bathing suits, bikinis, tans, sunglasses, cheap beer, and lots of sunshine. The party seemed to be a slap in the face that said, “Welcome to L.A.”
Jim and I went down the waterslide several times until we had to soundcheck. We were dripping wet on the stage during soundcheck. Our manager was there, so was his and our friend Lobo, one of the coolest dudes alive. Our friend Darren Rademaker (D-Rad) from a band called the Tyde, was there too. He sang with us when we covered “Fun, Fun, Fun” by some band who apparently sounds a lot like we do. We’d just learned the song that afternoon, which is why I didn’t get to sleep. The rest of the set went well. Back to the inflatable waterslide for me and Jim. So many wet people in bathing suits, most of them drinking cheap beer in the hot sun. Dave, Neil, and Chris eventually joined us on the waterslide action. On my last trip down I got a massive cut when I hit the pool of water at the bottom of the slide. The water at the bottom was thinning out this late in the day and it had become a whiter shade of pale gray.
West Hollywood, where the famous people are…
After Little Radio we went over to West Hollywood for our gig at the famous Troubadour, where Neil Diamond once recorded a live album, and Elton John has played there, and John Lennon and Harry Nilsson were once ejected from this venue. Most of us were still in our wet swimming shorts and still had our shirts off as we loaded in. Then Lightspeed Champion soundchecked and Chris and I took a stroll into Beverly Hills, where all the rich people live. The Troubadour is right on the edge of Beverly Hills. We saw a photographer and a muscle man doing a photo shoot in front of a fountain in a grassy area. It was quite hilarious. Chris and I took tons of pictures of some of the nicest and most expensive houses in Southern California, and possibly in the entire world for that matter.
Back to the Troubadour to setup our gear on stage. Our friend Lauren showed up, she is quite possibly the biggest Explorers Club fan. She gave me a gift; a copy of Charles Bukowski’s novel Women, which I couldn’t fit in my pocket so I leaned it against my amp because it was time to play. I wore my red 1970s suit over a Bahamas shirts along with my enormous yellow sunglasses. I probably looked like a drug dealer from 1978.
The show went very well, there was a room full of people there to see us. L.A. loves us, and likewise, we love them. I had some technical problems towards the beginning of the set keeping my Yamaha piano plugged it, but I got it working again. Again, I was up front, right between Jason and Jim. Jenny Lewis from Rilo Kiley was right up front, and I didn’t even realize it at the time. Jason told me afterwards, and my mind was blown once I realized who that familiar looking girl was. I somehow missed the band discussion before the show when they went over what the set would be that night; turns out it was a lot different than on this night than it had been on the rest of the trip. We ended the set with “Fun, Fun, Fun” and were joined on stage by D-Rad (the Tyde), and Darian Sahanaja (formerly of the Wondermints) and Nelson Bragg, that latter two being members of Brian Wilson’s (the genius behind the Beach Boys) current touring band. The augmented Explorers Club featured their guest vocals and Nelson played some wicked tambourine right next to me. It was so cool. The crowd went even more nuts.
Loading off stage was hectic. We’re in L.A., where we all know tons of people now, and I was designated to load out and keep an eye on our stuff in an alley by a dumpster while most of the rest of the band mingled with our many fans, among them some famous musicians who are icons to most of us. Finally some of my wonderful band-mates and some friends (Darian), good Americans, helped us load our gear into the trailer. I slipped back inside, but nobody I knew was around. Back to the front entrance. My friend said she was leaving, I guess she figured we were too busy for her. I signed some of our records for fans. And apparently Jenny Lewis was right behind us outside, and again I was completely oblivious to this. I must work on that. Outside tons of people were talking to us. Our record producer (who lives in Atlanta but was out here recording some band) was there too. We saw that actor Jonah Hill (Superbad) buy a ticket and enter the Troubadour, guess he missed our set. A well respected man who had just seen us perform took us out to dinner at a nice Tex Mex place. The food was great.
By the time we got back to the Troubadour it was nearly empty, no sign of Lightspeed Champion either. We drove over to Darian’s house, where we were spending the night. Inside the house I felt like I was in 1966. The entire house had a retro feel, from the kitchen to the furniture to the lamps and the electric pianos. Darian’s record collection was enormous, and incredibly good. We talked and hung out for a bit with Darian, Nelson, and Debbie, who is the touring keyboard player for Heart, and she knows Cameron Crowe. At some point Jim disappeared into the night and went for a walk. It was after midnight, so it was technically his birthday. Darian took the rest of us downstairs and we listened to Brian Wilson’s new and yet to be released album, Lucky Old Sun. It sounded great. Eventually we went to bed.
I awoke to the smell of breakfast. Debbie had gotten up early and come back to Darian’s place that morning just to cook us breakfast. She’s very sweet. It was very good breakfast too, bacon, eggs, pancakes, fresh strawberries, good orange juice. Then we talked for a while longer while everyone else was waking up. Darian told us some very funny Brian Wilson stories, since he is somewhat of a madman/genius.
California Dreamin’ (safe and warm in L.A.)
We left Darian’s place and were super late to this internet radio session called the Sound of Young America. We found the place, which was somewhere in Los Angeles, and we recorded some live acoustic songs there. Then we went over to Nightingale Studios to meet D-Rad from the Tyde. Our singers got to record and sing on a song that will be on the new Tyde record. It was a nice studio. Members from the Thrills and Brothers & Sisters had already contributed some music to the song, which I think is called “Malibu Moon” or “Sand in My Jeans.” Jim and Dave got to share the lead vocals with D-Rad. The song goes something like this:
Heather why’d you have to go and put sand in my jeans
You know it’s scratching up my mobile phone screen…
Nothing is what it seems, under the Malibu Moon…
This is a great song, I can’t wait to hear it on their new record. Since Neil and I aren’t allowed to sing, we went upstairs and hung out in the studio lounge and read a MOJO magazine article about the Beatles Sgt. Pepper album. Then we drove off to our next gig in Pomona, which is about a 40 minute drive.
This is our Last Goodbye, last show with Lightspeed Champion
It’s strange how Pomona is such a quiet sleepy town and it’s so close to Los Angeles, one of the biggest cities in the world. We played at this huge venue called the Glass House, which wasn’t very well stocked. It was hard to even find bottles of water there, much less cold ones. This is an all ages club, meaning no alcohol. We played incredibly early on this huge stage in this huge venue, and there was a decent turnout for a Sunday, even though the largeness of the place made it feel less packed than it actually was. Only a few of our friends showed up, I guess most of the L.A. crowd figured they’d seen our best performance the night before. Our show went pretty well. It was Jim’s birthday. I saw our lawyer over by our merch booth, but I didn’t get a chance to talk to him, he’d disappeared by the time I got back from wherever.
After the show Jim, Neil, and our biggest fan Lauren took a walk around Pomona. Then it was back to the Glass House to watch Lightspeed Champion for the last time. After their set was over we all hung out in the green room and then loaded out. We also took tons of group pictures, Lightspeed and crew, Flowers Forever, and the Explorers Club. There must have been at least 10 cameras with which some fans were taking pictures with some of our cameras. Then the last handshakes and hugs and more pictures. Our biggest fan left, and then Lightspeed left for L.A. International to fly back to England.
One bittersweet irony about touring is you get to meet the coolest people then you have to leave town the next day, hoping you’ll get to meet again next time around. It’s also strange to play with the same band every night for so many weeks, then suddenly they go back to England and you don’t know if you’ll ever see them or perform with them again, even if you do get their contact info.
We drove down the road and found an In-and-Out Burger. They’ve got good burgers. It was a clear night, and we gazed up at the stars. Then it was my turn to drive through the desert. Jim sat shotgun to keep me awake as everyone else slept. We seriously wanted to just park the van in L.A. and in the morning surprise the rest of the guys. Denver was supposed to be our next gig.
Fear & Loathing & flat trailer tires in and around Las Vegas
We were somewhere around Barstow on the edge of the desert when the tiredness began to take hold. How far is Baker? We were hoping to stop there for lunch, but I just got some 3 a.m. gas station coffee instead. There is only one road from L.A. to Las Vegas – U.S. Interstate 15. There was one stretch of I-15 in Nevada that went uphill for at least 20 minutes, giving the Hulk a run for its money. I was completely twisted on extremely dangerous tiredness and absurd conversations with Jim. But there was no going back, and no time to rest. We would have to ride it out. We only had so much time to get to Denver. The desert sunrise was nice. Now that it was light I could see the road go straight for as far as I could see. A semi-truck in front of me had one of its back tires peel off and shred into several pieces. I steered into the left lane to avoid this. Bad memories from several tours ago when a truck tire smashed our windshield right in front of me, sending shards of glass everywhere as I was reading Hemingway’s “The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber.” There would be none of that this time. But then KLUNK! I looked in the mirror and saw the right trailer tire was flat. I pulled off to the side and Dave, Mike, and I changed the tire, our last spare. The flat tire had taken the trailer fender with it too. Jim saw the fender in the road and ran down to grab it. It was too twisted to be bent back into shape for reattachment, so we left it in the desert as a souvenir, proof we’d been there.
I slowly drove to the next exit and we pumped up the new tire with lots of air. We were about 20 minutes outside of Vegas. When we got to Vegas it was crazy, the 8 a.m. Interstates there are hell on wheels, and I was so tired I was about to crash for at least 20 hours. I pulled over somewhere in the city and we bought another spare tire for the trailer and then ate breakfast. Dave’s turn to drive. Five minutes outside of Las Vegas there is only desert, and you can look back and see the skyline fade into the distance as the desert mirages the skyscrapers.
The Beehive State is so salty
Utah was hot and salty. We stopped somewhere to look at some canyons and an open area that looked red like Mars but had huge white salt spots. We stopped to get gas somewhere in the middle of the state. We turned onto a gravel road and found a deserted gas station with several old pumps out in the open. We turned right onto a dirt road and found an operational gas station with one pump. Mike bought a green smoke bomb and lit it in the parking lot. He thought it was funny, and it was. About three or four convenience store customers showed up and left on ATVs or four-wheelers. One customer pulled up on a tractor and he seemed irritated that a bunch a stinkin’ hippies were in wherever, Utah, being dirty and smelling awful and lighting green smoke bombs. It was similar to Easy Rider, “I’ll take the one with the long hair, she’s real pretty.” We got our of there as soon as we could. The old ladies running the gas station were nice to us though, and we probably gave them their biggest purchase of the day.
Time is like a stretch of the Rocky Mountains
It was dark by the time we got to the Rockies, and the van struggled to make it up some of the mountains. It was now cold and I ended up wearing a leather jacket over a short sleeved shirt and Bermuda shorts. Cold air was seeping into the van and over my legs. There was a lot of road construction going on, which made it hard to go between the tight cones and barrels but it gave me an excuse to drive slower and give our engine a little rest. This was easily the most stressful drive of my life. The Hulk’s lights were flickering and cutting out sporadically as we chugged up the mountains anywhere from 25-40 mph. I thought we would never get to Denver. The mountains just kept on coming. Then our GPS started actin’ crazy. It gave us a wrong destination, apparently, instead of our hotel. I let someone else figure that one out. I was driving this beast, this now troglodyte of a van that was falling apart at the seams, and I was nearly slipping through its cracks.
Mile High City, but it seems like Eight Miles High. It’s way the hell up there.
We eventually got to Denver. The next day we went to a cool record shop near the venue. Their selection was so good that Mondia and I got pissed off because we knew we couldn’t possibly buy all the wax we wanted.
Say man, you ain’t no organ player
Down the street I found a Baldwin organ at the Salvation Army—Jim was with me and ended up buying it for a bargain since there was plenty of room in the trailer. The Denver show went well and we played with a band that sounded somewhat similar to us, Dario Rosa. The Mile High City made some of us feel a little lightheaded.
Southern Accents are back in style
Our next stop was Greenville, S.C. We drove 11,500-something-odd miles on this tour. We played the Greenville Downtown Alive Festival; this time we were the only band on the outdoor stage. It was the biggest crowd we’ve ever played to. The Hulk made it back to the Charleston area and we were home.
That’s all folks. I’ve decided I’m not fixing my grammar mistakes. Until next time, look at all these other links…
External links:
Chris Mondia’s blog (scroll back to find tour stuff): http://laughingmood.blogspot.com/
Toronto show review: http://www.chromewaves.net/index.php?itemid=3049
Rake Magazine interview from Minneapolis: http://www.rakemag.com/multimedia/slideshows/lightspeed-champion-the-explorers-club-flowers-forever
The Portland Mercury writes about the EC and deer: http://blogtown.portlandmercury.com/2008/06/the_explorers_club_are_go_for.php
Review of our Troubadour show in L.A.: http://larecord.com/revs/2008/06/23/the-explorers-club-the-troubadour/
Review of our Denver show: http://blogs.denverpost.com/reverb/2008/06/29/the-explorers-club-the-lions-lair/
The Onion’s review of Freedom Wind: http://www.avclub.com/content/music/the_explorers_club
Greenville Downtown Alive Festival: http://news.greenvilleonline.com/blogs/linkphoto/
