So things are beginning to wind down here in Claremont. A few more weeks, a few more shows, a few more hours of pretending we know what we’re doing “in the studio”, and then we’re gone. I for one have lived here on and off since 1996 and, to be perfectly honest, I’ve been ready to get the F out of D since 1997, well before the town started shooting its citizens and paving over its endangered species. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve been unable to see the nearby Angeles Mountains, spent an entire day driving home from Santa Monica, blown the Guinness-like head off a glass of tapwater or just sauntered down to the Village on a Saturday night with the vain hope of meeting somebody worth knowing between the ages of 19 and 35.

But this weird little backwater has nevertheless served as home and birthplace for our humblest of bands, and I think that no matter how many cities we see next year, we’ll be hard pressed to find a hangout as great as the FMC or a homebase as unbelievably supportive as Pomona College. It’s been a good run, and I honestly think we’re going to leave on a high note. So in case we forget to say it when we tear out of the parking lot in May, thank you all for putting up with us as long as you have. We already miss you.

As for the rest of you, lock up your daughters and start lowering your expectations now. We hit the road in August.